Reunion
by Ava Brett
Summary: When Sam Winchester left for Stanford University to study law it never occurred to him that life for his brother Dean would go on without him, now his brother is back, needing Sam's help to locate their missing father but he isn't alone. Sam needs to figure out where he stands now and decide once and for all if he's a Winchester or not (A/U)
1. Chapter 1

Reunion

By

Ava Brett

Disclaimer

**The characters of Jessica Moore, Sam Winchester and Luis Sanchez do not belong to me in any shape or form. I am merely using them for my entertainment purposes.**

Author Note

**Welcome to Reunion; story one in an ongoing saga which I'm hoping to write.**

**This story is actually completed you'll be pleased to know, I am merely polishing and editing as I go so even though I'm referring to it as a work in progress I guess it actually isn't.**

**The whole concept of the story came about during a conversation I was having with a friend. We were discussing the relationship between Dean and Sam and then she made the one comment which got me thinking "**_**Just imagine how different everything would have been if Dean had been married when he came to get Sam in the pilot, everything would change wouldn't it because Dean would be changed. Ooooooo even better, I dare you to make him a father as well. You know that would be fun to read, you should write it"**_

**At first I shook off the idea as ridiculous, there was no way that I was suitable to write a story like that, not only was every previous story I had written a Destiel one but I was also incredibly wary of creating a female character to partner one of the main characters, especially when that main character happened to be Dean Winchester. Own female characters tend to be destroyed in the Supernatural fandom but the thought of it wouldn't leave me alone. It was too delicious a theory not to give it a go so I began writing and once I started I found that I couldn't stop.**

**I never planned to publish it but I figured after all the hard work I put into it and the fact that its going to be around 100,000 words by the time I'm finished I figured that I kinda owed it to myself to give it a chance to be read on the off chance that there were people out there willing to give it a go so here it is…**

**This story is based on the pilot, reworking it to fit in with the concept of Dean being a married man and a father when he came to get Sam from Stanford to search for John. I've used all the dialogue I can from the original show but it has been expanded and changed. Having watched all the episodes from season one to seven back to back helps since the characters of Dean and Sam are pretty fresh in my mind still. **

**I've also spent a lot of time working on the 2D characters in the series, creating a back story for them and expanding their characterisation. You'll see an example of that in this chapter when it comes to Jessica and Luis (Luis is the guy at the bar with Sam and Jess at the beginning of the pilot) it's been great fun working on them both and making them into realistic characters!**

**Hopefully you'll enjoy it and will give it a chance! I tend to update weekly and the chapters tend to be a decent size so yep, here's hoping that you'll give it a chance!**

Overall Summary

**When Sam Winchester left for Stanford University to study law it never occurred to him that life for his brother Dean would go on without him, now his brother is back, needing help to locate their missing father but he isn't alone. Sam needs to figure out where he stands now and decide once and for all if he's a Winchester or not.**

Chapter Summary

**They were late yet again and Jessica knew that Luis wasn't going to be happy with them…**

Overall Romances

**Dean Winchester/Tansy Winchester (OFC), Sam Winchester/Jessica Moore and Troy Squire/Amy Hein.**

**Mentions of Troy Squire / Constance Welch and Joseph Welch / Constance Welch**

Romance for this chapter

**Sam Winchester / Jessica Moore**

* * *

Chapter One

* * *

**30****th**** October 2005**

**20:19 PM**

**Sam Winchester's and Jessica's Moore Rented Apartment**

**25 Broadway Avenue**

**Palo Alto**

**California**

* * *

Jessica Moore's Point of View

* * *

"Sam get a move on will ya, we meant to be outside the bar in ten minutes!" Jessica Moore called out, leaning briefly against the frame of the living room door as she forced her earring stud through the hole in her lobe.

There was no doubt in her mind that they were going to be late for the student party yet again, the same way they managed to be late for nearly every party to which they were invited.

Her boyfriend Sam was normally the most punctual man she knew, able to be ready in minutes if he thought it was for a worthy cause but the minute Jessica made the mistake of mentioning that they were going to a party or an event which involved socialising with a large group of people, then that punctuality which was normally so much a part of him would go flying out of the window as though it had never existed. He would suddenly become stubborn, his body stiffening as though he was going into battle as a gleam would come to the hazel eyes which would suddenly bore into her own. It was a look which Jessica was slowly beginning to dread seeing since it signalled that Sam would fight her every inch of the way, determined to get out of the party any possible way he could.

Suddenly from out of nowhere he would have countless of essays which needed to be completed or proof read so they were ready to hand in. If he didn't have that to fall back on then he would suddenly remember that he had a chapter in one of his textbook which he needed to be read and learnt off by heart for a presentation the next day.

On the rare occasion when Jessica would put her foot down threatening him with a sex ban if he didn't get his ass into gear and out of the door he would still manage to find a way to delay them further, taking ages in the shower or with his hair. He would even take ages over his clothes even though his sense of style was severely lacking in Jessica's eyes.

She could understand it if Sam was awkward or shy around strangers but she knew from past experience that he wasn't. Sam was the type of man who could walk into a room, attract everyone's attention and manage to charm the lot of them, somehow finding time during the night to mingle, speaking to every person who was at the party with the same interested look on his face as though he was actually listening when nine times out of ten Jessica was positive that he wasn't. On the few times she had joined him when he had been in mid conversation, the individual he was talking to would be blurting out their life history and any secrets they might have had. It was as though they took one look at Sam's face and just couldn't help themselves.

The only thing she could think of was that his reaction to it had something to do with his childhood. The childhood he never spoke about to her. There was no other explanation she could think of which would explain his sudden change in attitude.

Shaking her head, Jessica lowered her hands, glancing towards the large clock on the mantel piece which had been an heir loom from her grandfather and winced when she noticed that it was nearly eight thirty. Luis was going to be outside the bar doors in eight minutes exactly and he was going to be pissed when he realised that they weren't there to meet him.

The majority of their friends had accepted begrudgingly that any time Sam Winchester and Jessica Moore were invited to any party then they were going to be late to it. It didn't matter whether it was a birthday party or an anniversary of some description or a normal 'it's a Friday night lets get drunk for the hell of it' party, the pair of them would always arrive once it was in full swing and more then half of the guests were either high or drunk or sometimes a mixture of the both.

Some of them had tried to make them be on time by giving a false start time to them, informing them that the party was due to start thirty to forty minutes before any other guest was due to even arrive, but even that failed to work. Jessica was sure that there was something about Sam which made him able to tell when the start time was genuine or not. She would almost think he had some special mind power except for the small fact that she didn't believe in anything like that.

Luis Sanchez had always been different to the others though, refusing point blank to accept their inability to be on time to anything. The older man would simple argue that anybody, Sam and Jessica included, could be on time for any event if they simply planned for it in advance, the only time he accepted lateness was if the invitation was last minute.

It wasn't as though Jessica could even argue the point with him because she actually agreed with him but she refused to leave without Sam and if Sam was running late then it automatically meant Jessica would be running late even if she was sitting on their sofa, dressed and ready to go.

Luis had been the first friend Jessica had made at Stanford. They had ran into each other literally on her second day, making her drop her coffee to the ground though not before half of it had tipped itself over her brand new shirt which of course had happened to be white. Luis had apologised and insisted on buying her a new coffee to make up for his carelessness. For a moment Jessica had wondered whether the other boy was coming on to her and it had been an elaborate ploy to talk to her but since his second sentence to her had mentioned a long term girlfriend she figured that it wasn't.

He had demanded that they sat down for the coffee to make sure that it wasn't split again and began talking to each other, Jessica found him to be an easy listener and had began telling him about how homesick she was already and how different California was to Ohio where she was from. He had watched her closely, a thoughtful expression in his eyes as he took her number from her, flashing her a grin before he disappeared into the crowd leaving Jessica behind with her coffee and a ruined shirt.

She had been surprised when he turned up at her dorm room the next day, smile firmly in place as he invited her to be his plus one at a party one of his friends was throwing in one of the other dorm buildings. Jessica had glanced down at her outfit but Luis had brushed off her concerns, wrapping his hand around her wrist and dragging her out of her dorm with the same wicked smile as before.

The pattern continued for a while with Luis randomly appearing at her door with an invite to a party. They had been friends before she knew it, having lunch together when they could and casually hanging out. It was only when he had taken her to one of the events at the clubs he had joined and had insisted that she joined as well that she realised what he was trying to do. He filled her life with so many clubs and invites and nights out at the bar that Jessica hadn't found the time to be homesick for her family back home, any time her thoughts strayed to her parents or to her brother or sister then she would simply text Luis who would be at her door before she could blink with yet another invite or a movie in his hand for them to watch together.

It had been through Luis convincing her to go to their friend's Brady dorm party that she had even met Sam in the first place.

She owed him a lot and she knew deep down that she owed him better then to be late when she knew he needed her support for once.

The whole time they had been friends Luis had, had a girlfriend called Jasmine, who Jessica had met countless of times, she had known for a while that things had been going wrong between the pair of them but It had still come as a shock to her when Luis had met her at the quad for coffee and announced their separation. She had began to speak when he had stopped her, informing her that the only thing he wanted from her was for her to be standing at the connection bar entrance on the 30th at eight thirty to help him get shitfaced so he could even remember Jasmine's name let alone the pain he was currently feeling.

Jessica had promised she would be there at eight thirty, the same way she had promised that she would enter into the spirit of Halloween and dress up for the themed party which the bar had been advertising all around campus. Luis had shot her a searching look before he had shaken his head with a small snort of amusement, pointing out that she had never been on time for anything when she came with Sam. Of course at that point she had made the bet with him that she would.

A bet which had seemed like such a good idea when she had suggested it, since she had known that he would never say no, not when it went against his very nature to turn down any sort of challenge that he was presented with.

She should have really factored Sam into the equation before she had shaken hands with Luis, leaving him behind with a coffee and a pitying smile as she made her way to her next class.

According to the clock it was now eight twenty eight and they were still in their apartment. Even if they left that very second then they would still arrive late. The walk from their rented apartment to the other side of campus was a good twenty minute walk on a good day, a day which didn't involve Jessica wearing stupidly high heels which she could barely walk in. With those heels on it would take her and Sam about thirty minutes if not more to reach the connection bar.

Luis might have forgiven her if she had been five minutes late but there was no way he would forgive her arriving about nine o clock after giving her word to him. She knew that he would get over it, the same way he had gotten over all the other times this had happened but it still didn't change the fact that she had let him down when he needed her the most. God only knew how many lectures she was going to have to endure about their atrocious time keeping abilities before Luis was satisfied that she knew exactly how peeved he was.

Jessica sighed, running a hand down her short white skirt to make sure that it wasn't creased too badly from where she had kept it folded up at the back of her wardrobe. She had seriously gone all out this year and outdone herself with her costume. The slutty nurse's outfit she had managed to put together at short notice was guaranteed to blow Sam's mind when he saw it, or at least it would when he eventually managed to drag himself away from whatever it was that he was currently doing.

She glanced down at her red patent heels, frowning slightly at the throb of pain she felt around her toes, the shoes were clearly too narrow for her but there was no way in hell that she was going to take them off not when she knew that she wouldn't be able to get them back on again. She had no other shoes she could wear that would go with the outfit unless she wore her red converse trainers and there was no way they would go with what she had on, not if she wanted to look slutty anyway.

She would merely have to suck it up and ignore the pain as much as she could, if that didn't work then she would simply have to resort to getting drunk out of her head, that would definitely help numb the pain for her. She glanced down at the shoes again, a slow smile spreading across her face as she rotated her ankle. One night of discomfort and pain wasn't going to kill her especially when the shoes look damn good on making her legs appear endless.

She glanced towards the second bedroom, sighing in frustration as she turned to face it, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Sam!" she called out again. "Stop ignoring me! Are you coming with me or not? Luis is going to be at the bar any minute now." She rolled her eyes when silence met her, if she didn't know better then she would have assumed she was alone in the apartment for all the noise Sam was making.

God he had better be coming with her or she would kick his ass her self for making her wait for him. Jessica had no desire to leave him behind yet again while she went on alone. The last time she had been forced to do it had been to their friend Becky's flat warming party which she had thrown a few months previously. Not only had it been embarrassing to walk into the apartment alone and feel everyone's eyes on her but it had also been highly embarrassing to have to apologise to Becky for Sam's non attendance considering that Becky and her brother Zack were Sam's friends from his pre law course. In the end she had lied telling Becky that Sam was in bed recovering from a twenty four hour bug rather then telling her that he was in the library doing some last minute work.

That night had been the first time that they had fought with each other and even the memory of it had her wincing. It had been a shock to her system to discover how much unresolved anger had been hidden under Sam's easy going, pleasant façade. He had kept yelling how the course meant everything to him and how he had given up everything to succeed and get into law school and he wasn't going to let those sacrifices be in vain or let his brother down just so he could go to a stupid ass party.

He had apologised the next morning, taking her out for breakfast and promising that he would go to the next twenty parties if she wanted him to, perhaps she should have made him promise to be on time as well.

Pushing the memory of the argument from her mind Jessica sighed again, tapping her foot against the old wooden floorboards beneath her. If Sam took much longer to appear or did his usual trick of changing his mind last minute then Jessica would simply leave without him. There was no way in hell that she was going to cancel her evening just because he did, not when she knew that Luis was probably walking up to the bar looking for her and not when she had put so much damn effort into her costume.

Of course if she was forced to leave him behind then she would make damn sure that Sam was aware of how pissed off she was with him. Two weeks out on the couch should be enough time to make him realise how royally he had screwed things up. He would have to do some seriously grovelling before she would forgive him. This time his puppy dog look wouldn't work.

"Do I really have to go tonight?"

Jessica smiled at the reluctant, resigned note that was in Sam's voice. She twisted on the spot, tilting her head in surprise when she realised his voice was coming from the kitchen area. When the hell had he snuck past her to get into the kitchen? She blinked when he suddenly ducked his head around the door frame. Clearly one glance at the expression on her face was enough to answer his question for him, she watched with a raised eyebrow as he pulled a face before sighing and stepping into the living room where she was waiting fro him.

"I think we both know the answer to that question already Sam" she teased him, her eyes widening when he rolled his eyes at her making sure she caught the movement as his mouth twitched as though he was trying desperately to keep from smiling at her. "Don't even think about whipping the puppy dogs out at me, I've been working on it and I'm pretty sure I'm immune to them now so you'll simply be wasting your time," She stated, her eyes narrowing slightly as they scanned his features.

There was no doubt in her mind that Sam Winchester was one gorgeous looking man who could have easily been a model if he had chosen to be, god knew she had been out with him enough times to see the way people reacted to him, he had even been approached by modelling firms when they had been shopping though he had turned them down with an amused laugh.

Sam was exactly her type of man with his light brown hair that had a slight wave to it and his large, heavily lashed hazel eyes which always shone with amusement and intelligence as though the world and everything in it merely entertained him because he got it all already. His smile was lovely; wide and friendly revealing straight white teeth.

The fact that he was six foot four was a mere added bonus for Jessica who stood five foot eight in bare feet, being with Sam meant she could get away with wearing high heels without having to worry about towering over him.

The only thing which Jessica didn't like about Sam was the fact that he always appeared serious and lost in thought when he thought no one was watching him; his shoulders slumped down as though he had the weight of the world on them and it was slowly crushing him. Whenever she would ask him what was wrong or what he was thinking he would always wave the question off, swiftly changing the subject and making it beyond clear that he had no desire to talk about it with her.

"Look Sam" she stated firmly "Tonight with Luis is gonna be good fun and you know it, it always is after all."

Her eyes dropped away from his face to focus on his outfit, she sighed, bringing a hand to her forehead, she could feel a headache brewing already and she hadn't even started drinking yet. As far as she could tell Sam was wearing the exact same outfit which he had been wearing when he had come in from his afternoon lecture. A faded grey t-shirt with a slogan across it for a band she had never heard of, a light denim blue shirt over the top of it and a pair of worn jeans which had quite frankly seen better days. Unless Sam was going to the party as an unkempt student then he clearly hadn't bothered to dress up for the Halloween themed party.

"I know even before I ask this that I'm gonna regret it but where exactly is your Halloween costume Sam?" She demanded, placing her hands on her hips.

Sam laughed at her question, glancing down at his outfit and plucking at his shirt with his fingers before he lifted amused hazel eyes back to her, a wide grin in place causing his two dimples to appear in his cheeks, a clear sign that he truly found what she said amusing. There was something about those two dimples that made her want to poke her finger into them every time they appeared though so far she had resisted the urge.

"Come on Jess" he remarked, an undercurrent of laughter to his voice which deepened the tone sending a pleasant shiver down her spine. "Don't waste your breathe asking me questions which you already know the answer to. You've know for two years now how I feel about Halloween!" He tilted his head to the side, one eyebrow raised as he watched for her reaction to his comment carefully.

Jessica stared back, mimicking his raised eyebrow as she gave his point some consideration.

She couldn't deny that Sam had made his feelings about Halloween and how pointless the celebration was on more then one occasion, not just to her but to anyone who would listen to him. The one time she had mentioned it had been at Brady's dorm party, the very same one which Luis had dragged her to. It had been Halloween and everyone bar Sam had been dressed up, using it as a conversation starter, she had downed her shot and walked over to him, asking him where his costume was.

He had turned to her, his eyes giving her the once over before he had informed her in a bored voice that Halloween was a stupid holiday and that he refused to celebrate in on principle. If she gave him a proper holiday such as Christmas then he was all for it but he wouldn't make the effort for something as shallow as Halloween.

Jessica should have been turned off by him, but there had been a flash of something in his eyes which had intrigued her, making her stay when normally she would have walked away with a polite smile to speak to someone else. She had stayed with him the rest of the night arguing with him and trying to make him see what a great, fun holiday Halloween was because as much as he might hate it, she personally loved it but it had been hopeless. He hadn't been moved by her valid arguments points and had merely stood up and announced he was going home with a smile leaving without asking her for her number, she could still remember the pleasant shock she had had when she had walked out of her English lecture the next day to find him leaning against the wall, looking thoughtful as he waited for her, inviting her to come to lunch with him so they could discuss the other holidays.

The one thing Jessica had realised that night was that it would take someone with a great deal more patience then she did to change Sam Winchester's opinion over something once he had made his mind up over it, certainly in all the time she had been in his life she hadn't seen anyone manage it.

"Fine, you know what on this occasion you win ok" she said, throwing her hands into the air with a look of defeat. She turned from him and grabbed her red coat and small red clutch bag which she was bringing with her. "If people at the bar stop us to ask what you've come as we'll simply have to tell them that you have the imagination of a watermelon and have come dressed as a student." She glanced over her shoulder at the sound of his laughter and felt an unwilling smile come to her face when she saw his wide grin. "We're leaving now though Sam and by now I mean right this second or I swear to God you'll be sleeping on the couch for a week. Luis is going to kill us for being so late to meet him and I'm gonna tell him it was all down to you so he'll go easy on me with the lectures and focus all his attention on you instead." She remarked as she pulled on her coat, quickly buttoning it up against the cold weather she knew was waiting for them.

"You know Luis is a big boy Jess, the king of the campus if you believe what he says. I'm sure we can find more then one way of keeping himself occupied until we get there." Sam pointed out bluntly, a smile still lingering around his mouth as he grabbed his own coat from the back of one the dining room chair and pulled it on. "We'll clearly just have to drown him with shots until he forgets all about it. So knowing Luis and the fact that he's probably already started drinking we're talking about maybe three shot before he's declaring his love for us and telling us how we're the greatest friends ever."

Jessica giggled, shaking her head at him.

"Poor Luis, if he could hear you now he'd probably beat your ass for slandering his character" she remarked. "Having some shots tonight does sound pretty good though don't you think?" she remarked thoughtfully. Sam nodded the grin back on his face.

"Hell yeah it does, I'll race you to the bar, loser has to buy the first two rounds of drinks and has to deal with Luis at the end of the night" he remarked, flashing her a childish grin before he sprinted to the door, flinging it open and disappearing into the hallway.

Jessica rolled her eyes as she followed him out of the door closing it behind her.

Tonight was certainly going to be a good night. She could just tell.

* * *

Author Note

**Thanks for taking the time to read, I know it's a bit of a monster of a chapter. I wish I could tell you the others are shorter but to be honest they are kinda the same length… good if you like long chapters of course **


	2. Chapter 2

Reunion

By

Ava Brett

Disclaimer

**Characters which belong to Eric Kripke the creator of Supernatural who feature in this chapter are:**

**John Winchester, Sam Winchester, Dean Winchester, Jessica Moore and Luis Sanchez (Though Luis's surname was chosen by me)**

**As usual I am merely using these characters for my own entertainment purposes and I make no money from this at all. It's all for fun **

Author Note

**Here's chapter two for you all freshly polished and edited for you all.**

**I never expected to get to this point when I was in the home stretch and able to go back and polish them up so they all flow together! It certainly is a great feeling and to know that the next story is already under way ready to be put up once this one is finished.**

Overall Summary

**When Sam Winchester left for Stanford University to study law it never occurred to him that life for his brother Dean would go on without him, now his brother is back, needing help to locate their missing father but he isn't alone. Sam needs to figure out where he stands now and decide once and for all if he's a Winchester or not.**

Chapter Summary

**Sambuca is a drink which is made by demons…**

Overall Romances

**Main Romances:**

**Dean Winchester/Tansy Winchester (OFC) and Sam Winchester/Jessica Moore **

**Mentioned Romances:**

**Troy Squire/Amy Hein, Joseph Welch/Constance Welch, John Winchester / Mary Winchester and unrequited Troy Squire / Constance Welch**

Romance for this chapter

**Sam Winchester / Jessica Moore, Mentions of John Winchester / Mary Winchester**

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Chapter Two

* * *

**30th October 2005**

**23:40 PM**

**The Connection Bar**

**Stanford University Campus**

**Palo Alto**

**California**

* * *

Sam Winchester's Point of View

* * *

Sam Winchester kept his eyes fixed on the shot glass he had his hand wrapped tightly around, hoping against hope that if he concentrated on it enough then the room around him would stop spinning.

He had been lucky enough to spot a group of giggling young girls seated at a table near the bar, begin to slowly gather their belongings together, talking excitedly to themselves as they looked around. Whether they were going because they had somewhere else to be or they were going because they were under aged and knew that the bouncers would soon begin their sweep for people like them, Sam didn't know and if he was being honest with himself he didn't care either. He wouldn't have paid them any attention except for the fact that they had something which he wanted extremely badly.

Sam had left Jessica and Luis mid sentence, moving away from them and weaving through the packed room like a missile, ignoring all of the people who called out to him, trying to coax him over to them so they could talk. He came to the table and smiled watching as the girls stared at him in surprise, some mouths hanging open, some faces reddening at the sight of him so he did what Winchesters did best and he used his looks to get what he wanted. It had been an easy matter to convince them to stop lingering and to leave so he could steal their table from them. They had been taken in, insisting he sat down before they left so there could be no doubt that the table was now his. He sat with them for five minutes, talking to them while barely listening to a word they said. He had just been thankful to sit his ass in a chair before he face planted to the floor.

He had waved Jessica and Luis over the minute the girls headed to the door, picturing the wide grin which would have been on his brother's face if he could have seen him in action. Of course if his brother had been there then Sam would have had to endure countless comments about how he was clearly unable to hold his drink. Thankfully Dean wouldn't see him in that state that night and since they weren't exactly talking at that moment in time it meant that Dean would never know. Sam was determined that by the time they did meet again, he would be able to handle his drink just as well as his older brother could.

Sam tilted his head to the side as he lightly swirled the liquid in the shot glass around, his eyes caught by the movement. He wasn't exactly sure how many of these they had had since they had entered the bar but the last time he had been aware of a number they had been up to nine each with the tenth one on the way. He thought that it had been an hour ago but he was well aware that he might have misread the clock. It could just have easily have been two or three hours since he stopped keeping count.

He rested the shot glass against the cluttered table surface keeping a grip on it as twisted his head around so he could look at the other two to see whether they were in better shape then he currently was.

Jessica was standing just to the side of him, leaning forward so her weight was rested against the table, hand gripping the side of it tightly in an attempt to support her self and to keep her steady. Luis had stuck his head between the two of them, one hand resting on the surface while the other one floated about as though it had developed a mind of its own during the course of the night. His sharp dark eyes looking out from around the white and green make up he had plastered on his face from his Zombie costume. Sam watched his friend's hand for a moment as it moved, curling into a fist before it suddenly popped open leaving the palm exposed to the ceiling before he suddenly flipped it over. Sam wondered foggily whether Luis was even aware that it was moving.

He doubted it though; the older boy seemed too intent on telling some story about a test he had, had to do the day before in one of his classical classes. The story was clearly funny if the wide grin on his face was anything to go by, add the fact that Jessica was laughing and it made Sam wish that he had actually paid attention to the story from the beginning instead of thinking of shots and spinning rooms.

Jessica had been right when she had warned him that Luis would be pissed off with the pair of them for being late to meet him but the other boy had soon gotten over it when he had downed the three tequila shots Sam went and got him back to back. He had no doubt that they would be hearing about it when Luis recovered from his inevitable hangover the next day but at least it meant that they were safe from the lecture at that one moment in time which was the main thing in his eyes.

Sam had met Luis Sanchez a week after he and Jessica had officially began dating when the other man had hijacked their coffee date by taking the spare chair at their table and talking to Jessica, Sam had been a bit put out at first especially when Jessica had been so glad to see Luis but he had soon realised that the man sitting opposite him clutching a large latte was someone who was worth knowing.

After a frosty first fifteen minutes they had suddenly hit it off, sharing a similar sarcastic humour which hid a determined drive to succeed in the world and to make a name for themselves. It had been the first time Sam had met anyone like him before and it had been kind of refreshing. The same way that it had been refreshing to finally have a friend on his own, one he could simply hang out with or just ring or text to come with him to a bar. Nine times out of ten Luis would have had other plans but he would always invite Sam to that instead, a small thing that allowed Sam to increase his friend base from two people to a full contact book.

Having people want to hang out with him and who wanted to hear his opinion on things rather then disregarding them instantly like his father tended to do was a feeling he wasn't used to experiencing.

His only proper friend before Stanford had been his older brother Dean. The few times when they had been growing up when they had managed to stay in a town long enough for the other children in Sam's class to begin to accept him as one of their own, their father would finish up his hunt, pack up their few meagre belongings and leave, taking them with him and making them start again in a new town and a new school, Most of the time they had been forced to leave in the middle of night with no warning meaning that Sam couldn't even say goodbye.

In the end it had been simpler and less painful just to not bother making friends; instead he had clung to his brother, relying on Dean's warmth and humour to get him through any bad patches they found themselves in. At least he had known that Dean would always be with him wherever their father dragged them to next.

Being able to actually stay in one place long enough to feel accepted and to make friends was an amazing feeling and one which he wasn't willing to give up any time soon. He liked being able to stay in California, he liked being able to wake up in his own bed within his own apartment. It made him feel normal as though he could draw a line under everything which he had experienced before he came to Stanford.

Sam frowned, swirling his drink again as he stared at it. The last thing he wanted to do that night was to think about his childhood because if he thought about that then he would enviably think of Dean. It was always the same, every time he allowed him self to think of the older man, then he would begin to wonder how he was and what he was doing with his life now. He would end up staring at his mobile, Dean's number brought up on the screen as his finger lingered over the call button deciding whether he should break his own rule to do it. Sam had sworn to himself as he sat on the coach that took him away from his Dad and Dean and towards California that he would rely only on himself to solve his problems. It was what his Dad had wanted if his shouted comment warning him not to come back if he left was anything to go by.

There would be no more running to Dean to moan or to expect his brother to intercede on his behalf and sort his problems out for him. Dean had spent his life since the age of four forced to do that until it had become second nature from him. It was time that Sam gave his brother a break from having to deal with him, it was time that Sam dealt with his own shit alone and so far he had done pretty damn well at it.

It was the right thing to do; his brother deserved a shot at living his own life for a change rather then forced to live through Sam. With Sam gone, Dean would be able to put him self first once.

So what if Sam missed Dean every single day without fail?

So what if thinking about his brother and picturing his face in his mind produced a sharp ache in his heart and a strong, almost overwhelming desire to hear his voice over the phone even if it was just to call him Sammy?

So what if Sam had to fight the urge sometimes to jump on a coach or plane just to see with his own eyes that Dean was still out there, alive and okay?

Sam had chosen this life style and he would have to deal with the consequences of that decision.

He had the normal, stable life which he had always dreamed and prayed for in the past when he was much younger. If having that chance to be normal meant that he was forced to make a few sacrifices along the way to keep it then it was something which he was willing to do. If one of those sacrifices meant cutting out contact with his brother until his law degree was completely finished then so be it. Dean would understand and forgive his decision the same way he always did. It wasn't as though Sam was planning on cutting him out indefinitely, he would make sure that the very first call he made when everything was done and dusted would be to Dean. If anything the lack of contact between them was a good thing because it meant that they would have a lot to talk about, they could actually have a normal conversation which didn't include various ways of killing the supernatural creatures they had constantly encountering back when they were together.

It was a conversation that Sam couldn't wait to have.

Sam shook his head, forcing the dark thoughts and memories out of his head, focusing his attention on Jessica as she began speaking, cutting directly across Luis unfinished story with a slight slur to her voice which made Sam glance up at her with searching eyes before a sudden grin came to his face as he chuckled to him self. It was pretty damn clear to him that his girlfriend was well on her way to being drunk if she hadn't already tripped over the thin line between sober and intoxicated. Not that it was easy to tell, Sam found it easier spotting a supernatural creature on the hunt, then telling when Jessica was drunk or not. She would always appear absolutely fine to any observer; nodding her head at the correct part in a conversation, laughing on cue and even able to answer any questions that people might ask her. Then the very next minute, in the blink of an eye, she was gone. Her blue eyes glazing over as she either face planted to the floor or jumped onto the nearest table, dancing wildly and clearly completely gone.

"Soooooo" she began, swaying slightly on the spot as she drew the one word out. "Here is to Sam and his awesome LSAT score!"

"Alight, alright. You know when you actually think about it, it's not that big a deal" he lied, his eyes widening as he heard for the first time how slurred his own voice had become. He glanced down at the shot glass, tilting it slightly and giving it a narrowed, considering look. He was well aware that his LSAT score was in fact a massive deal and one which placed him in a good, solid position to be chosen over the summer break for one of the internship being offered at four of the major law firms in the California state. It had been what he had been working towards and the fact he got it was amazing.

"Don't be taken in by his humble act Luis" Jessica declared "This guy here scored a 174 and he knows exactly what that means for him and his future, don't let him convince you otherwise because you didn't see the happy dance he did when he came through the front door earlier, it was not the happy dance of someone who thought it was unimportant" she stated, her blue eyes fixed intently on Sam's face.

"It wasn't a happy dance" Sam said, rolling his eyes when Luis continued to laugh, resting his head against the table. Sam glanced at Jessica, his words dying on his lips when he saw the look of sheer pride in her eyes as she watched him. "Well" he amended when she raised a disbelieving eyebrow at him. "Maybe it was slightly happy."

"In that case, let's drink!" Luis said, lifting his head from the table and staring groggily around him, his eyes lighting on a full shot glass which he grabbed, spilling half of the contents to the table before he lifted it to the air in a mock toast "To Sam"

"To Sam" Jessica echoed, winking at Sam "Drink up!" she urged

Sam shook his head and finally lifted his shot to his mouth, glancing at them both before he closed his eyes and drained the glass, shuddering as the sweet liquid hit the back of his mouth, burning his throat on its way down, a sound of disgust escaping through his lips.

Only god knew why Luis had decided that Sambuca was going to be their drink of choice for the evening. Sam had made it perfectly clear in every other drinking session where the subject of shots had come up that he hated the sickly sweet stuff with a passion. He could only assume that this was Luis's way of getting revenge for them keeping him waiting. Sam didn't mind shots but when he could choose the drink he always went for tequila or whiskey. Those had been the two spirits which he and Dean had snuck countless of times into their motel room while their father had been on yet another one of his hunts. Thinking back on it those nights had been some of the favourite times in his past. They would spend the time drinking and watching movies before they would eventually start talking about things. It was the only time where Dean would open up to him and allow him to see what went on beneath the surface.

"So what it comes down to is the fact that Sam is now one step closer to taking over the world then?" Luis commented with a smirk as he looked towards Jessica with a raised eyebrow.

"He could do if he wanted to do that" Jessica agreed. "I mean the mark is scary good Luis" she said, shaking her head with a laugh as she drained her own shot, slamming the empty glass onto the table. Luis nodded, an impressed look coming to his face though whether he was impressed by Sam's high score or the fact that Jessica was still standing and able to string sentenced together which actually made sense was beyond Sam to figure out. Instead he merely tilted his head back, staring up at the cracked ceiling above them. Someone had gone all out for the party, decorating the ceiling with cobwebs and pictures of witches flying on broomsticks. Sam wondered whether he should point out to the managers that witches didn't fly on broomsticks, in fact they didn't fly period.

"So what you're really saying Jessie is that little Sam Winchester here is most likely sorted for life now right? Whatever he wants is his for the taking with that score?" Luis commented, slapping his hand down on Sam's shoulder and leaving it there for a moment, the heat from the sweaty palm burned swiftly through Sam's shirt making his nose wrinkle up in distaste.

He moved his shoulder beneath the grip, thankful when Luis seemed to get the hint and dropped his hand from Sam's shoulder. Sam had never been one for touching unless it was someone he cared about a great deal and as much as he liked Luis he didn't qualify for that, in fact only three people in the world did and one of them was swaying to the music to the side of him and Sam had no idea where the other two currently were.

He licked his lips, frowning when he tasted Sambuca again. There was absolutely no way in hell that he was going to allow anyone to talk him into having another Sambuca shot that night, not unless Jessica and Luis wanted to be covered in his projectile vomit.

"Seriously though Sam" Luis continued, moving around the table so he was on the other side of Sam facing Jessica who was watching the conversation between the two of them with a wide smile on her face. "With a mark like that, you've got to be a first round pick now. You could pick any law school to go to in the country, hell you could probably even get a scholarship to attend a university in another country! They'll be begging you to come and join their student body, I've heard of people with scores like that being fought over and offered lots of cool stuff to try and tempt them over. Maybe you'll score a car out of the deal or something!" he said eagerly, his dark eyes shining with excitement under the dim lights.

"You know that only happens in the movies Luis, it doesn't happen in real life" Jessica pointed out, rolling her eyes at him. Sam shrugged his shoulder and glanced down before he spoke.

"Actually, I've managed to get an interview here on Monday at eleven. If I manage to ace that then I've got a damn good chance of getting a full ride here next year. At least that was the impression I got earlier from Professor Littrel this morning when he called me in so he could go through my options with me." His eyes came up flickering between the two of them. They both looks so pleased for him that he couldn't help but wonder what reaction his family would have if he told them about what had happened and what he had achieved.

His father would no doubt get pissed off with him over the fact that he was staying away for longer. Sam could picture the way the older man would breath out of his nose noisily like a bull before he stood to his full height like he normally did, it had been one of the happiest days in his life when Sam realised that he was taller then his father was now making the other man tilt his head back so he could meet his eyes. Of course being taller didn't stop the lecture occurring. He would still have to stand there while his father berated him for abandoning the family quest for revenge for his own selfish purposes. It had always been about revenge in their family for as long as Sam could remember. His father was driven by it, completely consumed with the need to find and kill the yellow eyes demon who murdered Mary Winchester twenty two years ago, taking her away from them.

It was clear to Sam that John Winchester had never gotten over the death of his wife and it made Sam wonder sometimes what the older man would have been like if their mother had never walked into his nursery that night and had instead lived but he could never picture it no matter how hard he had tried and Dean's memories were fragmented so he had been unable to provide Sam with any clues.

Dean on the other hand would probably make some smart ass comment about Sam being a complete and utter nerd but there was a chance that maybe if Sam caught Dean's eyes he would see the same look of pride in the green gaze that he saw now in Jessica's eyes. Dean's expression might even soften into a rare genuine smile. Sam was pretty sure that Dean would be proud of him; his brother had always made sure that Sam completed his homework and studied for any test he might have every evening regardless of where they were. He would even abandon his own work so he could help Sam when he needed it. It was just that Dean would never say the words out loud to him, that would have been too much like a chick flick moment for Dean's comfort especially when he had made it clear countless of times in the past that chick flick moments were simply something he didn't do.

"Seriously Sam, enough with the whole doom and gloom thing you have going on at the moment" Jessica remarked, a warm smile coming to her face as she reached out and covered his hand with her own, giving it a gentle squeeze of support. "The interview on Monday is going to go great, I just know it" she assured him confidently. Sam nodded, forcing a smile to his face.

"Yeah well it better" he answered lightly

"So I'm guessing with a mark like that in your LSAT that you've got to be the current golden boy of your family?" Luis remarked, leaning drunkenly on the table, his eyes fixed on Sam, at least Sam thought they were fixed on him; it was possible that Luis was actually seeing three of him.

"Nope" Sam answered running a hand through his hair. "They don't know about it yet"

If Sam got the scholarship and internship then he would have to send a text to his brother just to let him know what he was going to be away longer then he had initially said he was going to be but there was a little point in telling him until Sam had been accepted. It was a cowardly way of doing it he knew but Sam had stopped picking up Dean's call once his classes and lectures had kicked off properly. It wasn't that he didn't want to speak to his brother because he did; it was simply because they now had two separate lives from each other and they had to learn how to not be so dependant on one another. He was sure the space between them would do them the world of good in the end.

"No freaking way!" Luis said "Why haven't you told them? If it was me and I had that score then I would be seriously gloating, especially over my older brother." Luis remarked, his voice rising in surprise. Sam rested his palm against his thigh, unsurprised when his hand curled into a fist at Luis's comment.

Jessica shot him a quick searching look but she remained silent. They had been a couple long enough for her to know that any mention of Sam's family was completely off limit in any conversation. He knew that if he did talk about them then it would probably lead to an awkward conversation about Sam being a Hunter and the fact that there was a whole dangerous world out there which she knew nothing about and that was a conversation which he was most definitely not ready to have with her.

"Yeah well we're not exactly the Brady bunch Luis" Sam remarked lightly, picking up a peanut from the table surface and throwing it at Luis's head hoping that his friend would notice his discomfort and lack of answers and drop the conversations.

"Yeah and my family ain't exactly the Huxtables either Sam, its all the more reason to gloat in my eyes" Luis replied, reaching a hand into the bowl of peanuts at the centre of the table and throwing a handful at Sam in retaliation. He seemingly took pity on his friend though, looking at him and Jessica with a grin and a sudden wicked gleam to his eyes. "I'm sorry what was that?" he said, cupping a hand behind his ears "You want me to go and get us some more shots? Why I couldn't agree more with you both!" he stated happily with an evil laugh.

"No!" Sam yelled after him, his voice mingling with Jessica's raised one as the both stared at Luis with identical threatening looks as they glared at him.

"I'm sorry you both seem to be under the delusion that you have a say in this matter, you were late remember which means that you lost the bet which means that you'll drink whatever I bring you and you'll like it!" Luis answered, flashing them a grin and a wink before he turned and headed away from the table, moving through the crowd until he joined the crush at the packed bar.

Sam shook his head, reaching up and rubbing both hands down his face. He should have known that Luis wouldn't have forgotten that they had been late and his revenge was clearly to get them both as drunk as he was so they would suffer from the mother of all hangovers. If Luis got him one more Sambuca though then the older man would end up wearing it.

"Hey!" Jessica stated suddenly, catching his attention. "All jokes aside Sam, I'm really proud of you and you are gonna kick some serious ass with those stuffy jerks on Monday and they aren't gonna know what has hit them because they will be blown away by you and be begging you to take their full ride. I just know it."

Sam stared at her for a moment before he smiled warmly at her.

"You know I'm beginning to wonder what I would do without you Jess" he commented, his tone half serious, half joking as his eyes moved thoughtfully over her face wondering not for the first time whether meeting her had been the best thing which had happened to him in his life so far. It was certainly up there in the top three moments.

"Come on Sam, we both know that you would crash and burn without me" she joked, a gleam in her eyes as she reached out, her hand curling around his neck as she yanked him forward so their mouths could meet.. She tasted to peanuts and Sambuca but he didn't care at that moment in time. His hands came up automatically framing her face gently as he tilted her head to the side to give him a better angle. They continued to kiss with increasing heat, only pulling apart when Luis returned with a tray of brightly coloured shots which he threatened to pour over them in an attempt to help them cool down.

The rest of the night was a blur for Sam; he was aware of people they knew joining them at the table and subsequently leaving, of consuming more drinks then was possibly wise for him and being pulled onto the dance floor by a hyper Jessica before she kissed him, spinning around and leaving him breathless and laughing.

It was one in the morning when they eventually stumbled into their apartment, giggling loudly while hushing each other. They managed to change for bed before they both collapsed into it. Sam's last thought before sleep claimed him was that he had never felt as happy before in his life as he did in that one moment of time.

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Author Note

**Thanks for taking the time to read! **


	3. Chapter 3

Reunion

By

Ava Brett

Disclaimer

**Characters which belong to Eric Kripke, the creator of Supernatural, who are featured within this chapter are:**

**Troy Squire, Amy Hein and Constance Welch**

**Characters who belong to me Ava Brett, who are featured within this chapter are:**

**Jed Elliot, Benji Andrews and Nathan Lamb**

**Please do not use them without permission being granted by me first.**

**As always I am merely using these characters for my own entertainment purposes and for no other reason.**

Author Note

**So here's chapter three.**

**This chapter was always going to have to be in here somewhere due to the fact that this is following the pilot's timeline and I have guessed that this is the date and time when Troy Squire meets his end, I could be wrong but that's the joy of fan fiction, it doesn't matter if I'm wrong because I can and will make it work for me.**

**Part of the reason I love fan fiction is the fact that I can take something establish and change it to suit the concept in my head, so one major example of this is giving Dean a life with features a wife and a child, another example is taking those fleeting 2D characters which the TV show produces easily enough and expanding them to make them more realistic. Take Troy for example, other then the fact he is killed pretty nastily by Constance what do we know about him… pretty much nothing so that's where I step in and I morph him into 3D. I give him a background, I give him friends, I give him dreams and desires and I take a guy who only purpose is to look like a cheating jerk who dies, into someone who started off with the best intentions. I find it fascinating and it a process I love.**

**While I might not like writing a chapter without a flash of Sam or Dean in it, it clearly must be done for the sake of the story. There must always be a victim.**

**Anyway please enjoy!**

Overall Summary

**When Sam Winchester left for Stanford University to study law it never occurred to him that life for his brother Dean would go on without him, now his brother is back, needing help to locate their missing father but he isn't alone. Sam needs to figure out where he stands now and decide once and for all if he's a Winchester or not.**

Chapter Summary

**Troy Squire learns the hard way that sometimes you just shouldn't stop.**

Overall Romances

**Main Romances**

**Dean Winchester/Tansy Winchester (OFC) and Sam Winchester/Jessica Moore **

**Minor Romances**

**Troy Squire / Amy Hein, Joseph Welch / Constance Welch, John Winchester / Mary Winchester and unrequited Troy Squire / Constance Welch**

Romance for this chapter

**Troy Squire / Amy Hein, Unrequited Troy Squire / Constance Welch**

* * *

Chapter Three

* * *

**31st October 2005**

**02:00 AM**

**The Bar and Grill**

**Centennial Highway**

**Jericho**

**California**

* * *

Troy Squire's Point of View

* * *

"Wow, you know when you put it like that how on earth can I refuse such an offer?" Troy Squire remarked, reaching up and patting his cheek with his hand as he pretended to consider the suggestion. "Oh wait like this, thanks but no thanks guys. You go and have some fun but I am seriously out of here, I have a date with my bed waiting for me back home."

Troy grinned at the disappointed noises and hisses his comment received from his work buddies, waving his hands at them in a dismissive manner. "Hey what can I say, I need my beauty sleep and I can tell from most of your faces that you do to, though with some of you like Jed, you might need to be in a coma to resemble something approaching beautiful" he teased, laughing with Jed stepped forward and gave him a good natured shove.

"Get the hell out of here" Jed commanded gruffly. "Your invite to Nate's has just officially been revoked" Troy sniffed loudly, placing a hand over his heart and pretended to look hurt by the comment.

"You wound me Jed, you really do" he answered. "Anyway I'm out, guys I'll see you tomorrow or failing that the next day, Benji" he said, his eyes moving away from the group as a whole to focus on Benji Andrews, who was leaning against the side of the building, smoking and watching the scene with a look of amusement. "You're on the early with me tomorrow so I'll meet you outside here at six thirty unless you want me to swing by and give you a lift on my way in?" he offered. Benji took a last inhale of his cigarette before he clambered down the wooden steps, dropping the stub and grinding it into the mud making sure the flame was out.

"Thanks for the offer Troy, but I'm good. I'm going back to Ellie's house and she's only about a ten minute walk from here. You could bring the coffees in though since you'll be passing the diner on your way in, now that would be highly helpful." Benji suggested, his dark brown eyes twinkling in the faint light.

"Maybe" Troy remarked "Have fun with Ellie and tell her I say hi" he winked at them all, lifting his hand in a wave before he turned and headed over to his blue Vaux wagon, stopping by the driver's door and unlocking it before he pulled it open and climbed in slamming the door closed behind him. He breathed out noisily; resting his head against the back of his seat and allowed him self a moment to relax, the first one he had had since his shift began at midday.

God he was exhausted, working the late shift at the bar and grill the Friday before Halloween struck was no easy task especially when he was the one who had been put on the rota the next day to open up and take in the delivery they were expecting. He knew it was his own fault, he had been the one to demand as many shifts as possible so he could put the extra money into a saving account which he planned to use to buy him self a brand new car, something which he could feel proud of rather then his father's old second hand car.

Troy glanced down at his arm, wearily pushing the sleeve of his jacket back so he could look at his watch. It was five minutes past two in the morning, if he left now then he might be lucky and be able to get between three or four hours sleep before he had to be back in the car driving back to this very same spot where he seemed to spend all his time recently. The diner should be open and he knew that the two waitresses Kennedy and Morgan who worked the Saturday morning shift had a soft spot for him so would probably have two coffees ready for him the moment they saw his car arrive in the parking lot.

He was only thankful that Benji was the other guy on duty with him tomorrow, if it had been someone else then Troy would still have been trying to sort things out when the doors opened at seven for the early morning trade of travellers and truck drivers all intent on freshly brewed coffee and a cooked breakfast to get them started before they hit the road again.

Troy would have to ply him self with coffee as well just to keep awake during his seven hour shift. God he must have been a complete sucker for punishment or something to have actually agreed to this.

Shaking his head, he lifted it from the seat before he fell asleep in the car, god only knew what the guys would do if they saw him in that state before they left, he would probably would end up with both his eyebrows shaved off. He pushed his body into a sitting position, leaning forward slightly so he could stuff his key into the ignition and turned it, a small pleased smile coming to his face when he heard the familiar healthy purr it made. It might have been old and un-cool but at least it worked well. He put the car into reverse and moved out of the parking space, waving over the back of his chair at the few people who still lingered chatting and laughing with each other despite the cold air. He shook his head at them before he faced forward, hitting the clutch and putting the car into gear as he moved forward out of the car park and into the empty main road.

The journey home from work never took Troy long, ten minutes most nights, occasionally fifteen if he found him self behind a lorry driver who was trying to cover miles before he slept. However looking at the clear road Troy was positive that he was looking at a ten minute journey which meant he would be in bed within twenty minutes getting some much needed sleep.

He yawned; staring at the empty road before his mobile suddenly went off in his pocket attracting his attention away from sleep and his comfy bed. He slowed the car down slightly, keeping one hand on the wheel as he fished the phone from his pocket. A quick glance down at the flashing name caused a large grin to come to his face as he pressed the connect button, bringing the phone to his ear before he spoke, his tone amused.

"Why hello there Amy, shouldn't you be fast asleep by now, you must be aware that it's now two fifteen in the morning right?" he queried.

"Hello yourself gorgeous" she replied sounding amused, Troy could almost picture the smirk that would be on her face. "And yeah I'm well aware of the time thanks, I'm already in bed but I just thought that I would be a nice and considerate girlfriend and keep you company while you drive home, unless of course you don't want me to and then I can just hang up and leave you to sing to the late night radio, isn't it the ballads hour at the moment-"her voice trailed off as he laughed out loud.

"I'm always going to prefer you to the ballad hour Amy" he answered, keeping his eyes fixed on the empty road in front of him as he shifted his mobile so it was resting comfortably between his shoulder and the side of his head. He reached out and turned the volume on the radio up as one of his favourite songs came on.

"I'm sure there's a veiled compliment in that remark somewhere Troy" Amy remarked dryly. Troy could hear her shifting about before she spoke "Look, since I'm still clearly wide awake and you're still wide awake why don't you make a detour and come here tonight instead of going home. You know that I always enjoy your company and my parents are already fast asleep and I doubt they'll stir for the rest of the night, I saw my Dad take one of his sleeping tablets before he headed up. It would be like we have the whole place to ourselves plus I'm closer to where you work, that would mean more time in bed for you."

"I'm beginning to think that this call is not actually a call to keep my company at all, rather that it's a very thinly disguised bootie call" Troy remarked with a wide grin, reaching up and holding his phone again.

"Would you complain if it was?" she teased with a laugh "I'm wearing that night dress you like, you know the one with all the silk and lace" Troy breathed out, his mind filled with images of the outfit she was talking about as he considered her offer briefly.

"Tempting as that offer is and trust me when I say it really is tempting, I can't come over tonight Amy and it seriously kills me to have to say that to you, knowing you're wearing that night dress."

"And why can't you come then?" she demanded huffily.

"Well you see Amy, I've got this little thing called work first thing tomorrow morning which means I need to be out of the house by six at the latest and we both know that if I go round yours neither of us are gonna get any sleep. My dad would hand me my ass if I'm late not to mention what Benji would do to me, that guy has a death glare on him that could make people self combust if he wanted them to. Plus it would be just my luck that your Dad wakes up before I leave and shoots me with his pistol and I quite like to live thanks."

"I could make it worth your while Troy, I could do that thing you like, remember?" she promised.

Troy opened his mouth to answer her when he suddenly stopped, looking down at his radio with a look of confusion when the music he was listening to was replaced by a strange high pitched noise which sounded strangely like static. The radio had been fine earlier when he passed this way on his way to work and he definitely hadn't experienced it any other night. It didn't make sense, his car had passed its MOT earlier in the month and it had passed with flying colours, there was no way his radio should have been making that noise.

A flash of white caught his attention and he glanced automatically towards it, his eyes widening in surprise when he realised that there was a woman standing at the side of the road. She wore a white dress and Troy would have placed her in her early twenties, probably a few years older then he was. She stood there as though she was waiting for someone but who that was, was a puzzle. Hardly anyone used this road at this time of night.

"Troy are you still there or have you self combusted or something?" Amy's voice said in his ear bringing him back to reality.

"I'm here, let me call you back Amy" he said absently, smiling slightly when she sighed before she agreed. Troy ended the call, shoving the phone back into his pocket before he tapped his finger against the radio, messing around with the tuning to see whether that had any affect. Rolling his eyes at it, he switched the radio off as he slowed his car down. He hesitated for a moment considering leaving her but he couldn't do that, his father would have his hide if he ever heard that he had done that. Troy pulled to a stop beside her, leaning across into the passenger seat and speaking out of the open window.

"Hey, you got car trouble or something?" he asked, his eyes flickering down her body briefly. Her dress was torn near the bottom and he noticed that she was standing bare footed in the mud. There was a look about her as though she was drunk off of her ass or something. He wondered whether she had been at the bar and grill earlier, a member of one of the many parties they had come in during the night but he couldn't remember seeing her and she wasn't the type of woman you would forget either.

The woman stared at him, her body swaying slightly on the spot as though she was lightly dancing to a song in her head. Troy swallowed hard trying to ignore the movement.

"Take me home" the woman asked her voice soft and almost frail sounding. Troy reacted, leaning across and opening the passenger door for her.

"Sure, climb on in" he offered, she probably didn't live far out of his way and an extra ten minutes onto his journey wasn't much if it meant that he would have peace of mind, if he didn't take her home then he would only worry about her wondering if she got home safe.

The woman walked over to the car, each step she took careful as though she was out of practice when it came to walking. She stopped by the door and lowered herself into his car, closing the door behind her. Troy wondered briefly where her shoes, bag or coat were, he was more then used to seeing girl's bare foot at the end of a night out when they were too drunk to walk in their heels but they were always clutching them to their bodies. This girl seemed to have nothing with her nor did she seem to care that she didn't.

His eyes flickered over to her when she leaned her head back against the passenger seat, slumping down in a way which gave Troy a very clear view of her cleavage and the swell of her breast. He swallowed deeply, gripping the steering wheel tightly with suddenly sweaty palms.

"So where exactly do you want me to drop you then? Where's your home?" he asked with a nervous laugh, eyes glancing around to make sure that he was the only car around. The last thing he needed was for someone to see him and to tell Amy that he had been in his car with an unknown female late at night. That was a whole heap of trouble he could do without.

"At the end of Breckenridge Road" she answered after a pause. Troy frowned slightly before he nodded his head. He knew where Breckenridge Road was, it wasn't that far from his own turn off. He nervously licked at his lips as he spoke glancing back at her dress again.

"So are you coming back from a Halloween party in town or something because that's a pretty mental walk home if you are" he asked curiously. There had been plenty of people who had dressed up tonight, all of them having a meal before they went to various house parties; Troy had served werewolves, zombies, vampires and a man who was claiming to be the romantic poet John Keats. Troy had meant to be going to a party with Amy that evening but he had been forced to pull out last minute to cover his friend's Sandra shift since she had phone up earlier during the day claiming to be sick. Troy doubted she was really sick though, more likely she was just desperate to go to Grey Thomas's Halloween bash which he was holding at his house. It didn't particularly bother Troy, given the choice between dressing up and looking like a twat or working an extra shift and earning a shed load more of money in tips then he tended to make in one week it had been an easy decision.

Without conscious thought his eyes dropped back to her cleavage before he gave a nervous laugh, dragging his gaze away from her with difficulty. This would be so much easier if she wasn't so damn hot.

"I mean, what I'm trying to say is that a girl like you shouldn't be out here alone especially with no phone or shoes and stuff its erm… its not safe and all" he commented, trying to be polite and kept the conversation on safe ground. She turned to him, watching his face through large dark eyes as her mouth fell partly open. A movement caught his eyes and he dropped his gaze to her lap, watching helplessly as she pulled the skirt of her dress up revealing bare, shapely thighs.

"I'm with you" she pointed out breathlessly. Troy felt as though he had been punched in the stomach, the tension within the car escalating until he could almost feel it pressing down against his skin. He looked away from her bringing his hand to his face as he tried desperately to relax, pushing an image of Amy's face and smile into his head. He would simply drive the girl home like she wanted, leave her outside her house and drive away, putting the whole experience behind him as one of those pre Halloween stories he'd find funny in a few years time.

He jolted when he felt her hand on his face, turning him so he was facing her again. Her hand felt like ice against his arm skin causing a shudder to go through him at her touch. She obviously felt it, taking her hand away from him slowly and glancing down at it, looking at her finger tips as though she was savouring the warmth he had provided her. She looked back up, a flash of something in her eyes before it was gone leaving the same heated look as before. She stretched back into the seat before she spoke again.

"Do you think I'm pretty?" she asked him, her voice a mere whisper in the silent car. Troy nodded, his eyes dropping from her gaze to look at her cleavage again.

"Uh hi" he responded, beyond words as he shifted uncomfortably in his seat trying to ease his discomfort.

"Will you come home with me?" she asked. Troy hesitated for a moment before he caught her eyes again and found him self nodded, a disbelieving laugh escaping his mouth as his thoughts scattered in his head. Shit like this simply didn't happen to guys like him and there was no way in hell that he was going to lose the opportunity presented to him.

"Um hell yeah I will" he responded enthusiastically, putting his foot down on the accelerator, the car shooting forward quickly. He tried to make conversation with her but she ignored his every attempt, staring blankly ahead of her instead and acting like he had ceased to exist to her. He was surprised that he could still feel the cold radiating off of her skin. He had already turned the heaters on full blast to the point that he was sweating desperate to open a window and yet it had seemingly made no impact on her. He wondered vaguely just how long she had been waiting at the side of the road for a car to pass by and be willing to pick her up.

"Well here it is" Troy remarked, his voice breaking the uneasy silence as he hit the indicator and took the turning which led into Breckenridge road. He pulled the car to a halt and leaned forward, staring at the house in front of him in astonishment. The place was a complete wreck as far as he could see in the faint light. There was white paint chipping off the wooden boards which were probably rotten if the owner hadn't brother to use weather preservative on it. There were steps missing from the porch and windows were either cracked or completely gone. The whole place had an aged abandoned look about it which automatically made Troy think of all the B rated horror films he had gone to see at the local cinema.

He swallowed, suddenly nervous as he nibbled on his lower lip.

"Come on" he said with a disbelieving laugh. "There's no way you live here because no one lives here anymore."

The girl ignored him, staring up at the house with a look of misery and longing on her face before she spoke, a sad almost desperate note to her voice.

"I can never go home"

"What on earth are you talking about?" Troy demanded, confusion growing in him as he looked away from her, back towards the house. "I'm telling you that no one lives here, I mean take a look at it, whoever lived here is long gone now. You've had your fun now so tell me where you live and I'll take you there." He turned round to face her stopping when he realised that she was gone from the passenger seat. Troy frowned, twisting in his seat, checking the empty backseat before he undid his seatbelt, opening his door up and stepping out into the cold air. He glanced around him, dragging his jacket closer around him as he breathed out, he didn't know how she had done it but the girl was nowhere in sight. Troy was alone.

He did a three sixty turn before he spoke, silently cursing when he heard the tremor in his voice.

"Ok that was good, I'll give you that but the jokes over okay? Was it Reeve who put you up to this because if it was then you can tell him that I'm gonna kill him the next time I see him and he's so on washing up duty for a week!" He hesitated, looking around nervous, a feeling on unease and fear growing in his stomach as the heavy silence continued, he had never heard such silence before, there wasn't even the sound of crickets or other insects breaking it up. Troy swallowed again. "Do you want me to leave? Is this what this is about? You've changed your mind or something because that's fine" he stated, not expecting an answer. He shook his head, his gaze going back towards the house, he slowly walked towards it unable to stop him self.

"Hello?" he called out uncertainly. He glanced around him before he climbed up the rotting porch steps and walked over to the screen door which was hanging off of one hinge. "Hello?" he let out a shaky breath and leaned forward so he could peer through the broken glass. The place was most definitely abandoned. He could see furniture covered in a thick sheet of dust, whoever had lived there was gone and they had left in a hurry.

He screamed, covering his face protective when a large black bird suddenly appeared from nowhere and flew, screeching loudly, at his face, so close that Troy could feel its wings flapping against his exposed skin. He stumbled back away from it, hitting the porch hard before he was scrambling back to his feet and racing towards his car, all thoughts of the girl gone from his mind. All he wanted to do was escape from that place. He started the car, reversing before spinning it around and driving away from the house. He didn't slow down until he was back on the highway which led directly to his house.

Troy glanced back once towards the way he had come but quickly looked away again suppressing a shudder with difficulty. There was no way in hell that he was ever going back to that house again. There had been something about it which had freaked him out, something which felt almost unnatural. Shaking the feeling off he focused on his breathing, trying to steady it to help slow his still racing heart.

Shaking his head, Troy tightened his hold on the steering wheel as he promised him self that he would never pick up any hitchhiking women again no matter how hot they had might have been. All he wanted to do was get home and put the whole thing behind him.

He glanced back in the rear view mirror, screaming out loud when he realised the girl was sitting in the back seat, hands crossed serenely over her lap as she watched him, an intense hungry expression on her a face. A look which froze him in terror as he realised that it was the look which a predator tended to give its prey before it dispatched them.

He gasped when he lost control of the wheel, slamming through a closed bridge sigh. He slammed his foot on the brake stopping the car before it went flying off of the edge. He managed a shuddering breath before the woman appeared from no where, slamming him back in his chair and straddling him. She bent down to his ear.

"You're mine now" she whispered, her hand coming to his chest and pressing hard, clawing through his chest muscles as though they were nothing, clearly intent on his heart.

Agony like he had never felt before hit him in a never ending wave as his screams filled the car. He fought, desperately clawing at the hand trying to pull it away from his chest but he knew even he did it that it was hopeless. He had signed his own death warrant the minute he had taken pity on a stranger and stopped his car.

He only hoped that his parents and Amy would forgive him.

Troy was dead before she ripped out his heart, spraying the windows of the car with his still warm blood.

* * *

Author Note

**Thanks for taking the time to read **


	4. Chapter 4

Reunion

By

Ava Brett

Disclaimer – **None of the characters mentioned in the below piece of fiction belongs to me, they clearly belong to Eric Kripke who is not me… So yep just using them for my own entertainment purposes.**

Author Note – **What a mammoth chapter! It's taken a while to churn this one out as you can imagin**

**e.**

** What will strike you the most when you read this is the change in dialogue and situations and the way Dean reacts to both Jess and Sam. I've always held one belief that when Dean gives his love to someone then he gives them absolutely everything he has, being loved by Dean must be pretty terrifying especially when you're place so high on a pedestal that you'd probably get vertigo looking down. So I don't believe that Dean flirts with other women or men when he is in a relationship except when he's on a job and that's because he needs the information so yeah… you'll see what I mean when you get to that part of the chapter.**

** Dean and Sam have always been fascinating to write because of their sheer dependence on each other because they are literally all each other have in the world so its been really interesting writing Dean in this because he has changed. He doesn't have the overwhelming consuming fear that without Sam he is nothing and he is alone because he isn't. He can be himself and have a healthier relationship with Sam.**

** So he might seem OOC but he's actually isn't really because this is how I think he would be if you took away one of his fundamental fears. That he is doomed to die alone.**

** I should really thank my friend for making me do this. Its so much fun and consuming and just great. It's strange writing something for me but I kinda like it, if others like it then that makes it even better!**

Summary – **A/U – When Sam left for Stanford it never occurred to him that life would go on without him, now his brother is back, needing his help in locating their father but he isn't alone. Sam needs to figure out where he stands now and decide once and for all whether he is a Winchester or not.**

Chapter Summary – **The brother reunite**

Over all romance – **Dean Winchester / OFC**

** Sam Winchester / Jessica Moore**

Chapter Romance – Sam Winchester / Jessica Moore

* * *

Chapter Four

**1****st**** November 2005**

**04.00 AM**

**Sam Winchester and Jessica Moore's rented apartment**

**25****Broadway Avenue**

**Palo Alto**

**California**

**Sam Winchester's Point of View**

Sam opened his eyes, blinking in the darkness with a growing sense of unease. His thoughts felt muddled in his head, a sharp pain slicing at his brain making him wince as the room swam around him. He felt as though he was dying, his tongue thick and rough in his mouth as though he had licked the carpet when he had returned home from the bar.

He twisted his head, peering down at Jessica. She slept on, snoring lightly next to him, the duvet kicked off of her body from where she had obviously overheated during the night. He watched her for a moment before he turned towards the partially closed door, listening intently for any sound.

Something wasn't right he could feel it.

He glanced at his pillow, wishing for a moment that he could simply lay his head back on it and go back to sleep but that was a forlorn hope, something had woken him up and sleep would evade him until he had checked the apartment, If it was nothing then he could sleep, if it was something then he would have to deal with, hopefully without waking Jessica up in the progress.

Sam pushed him self out of the bed, shivering slightly when his bare feet made contact with the cold wooden floorboard and headed to the door, slipping through it and closing it silently behind him, his eyes scanning the shadowed hall carefully searching for anything which could be out of place. His hangover receded as the familiar feeling of adrenaline flooded his nervous system. The area looked normal; no-one had disturbed it. He cast another look back at the bedroom door before setting his shoulders and moving silently into the main living area.

Instinct made Sam keep his body close to the wall and the safety which the shadows provided him. He lingered for a moment by the door way, his attention caught by a cold breeze of air which ruffled his hair, his eyes snapped to the source, widening before narrowing as he saw the open window. The window he knew had been closed before they had gone out for the evening.

Someone was in his apartment.

A creaking sound in the next room had his head whipping round, he moved forward slightly, staring hard through the beads which Jessica had insisted they put up to give their old apartment some much needed character. He knew the creaking sound well. The floorboards were old and always creaked the minute any weight was placed on them. Sam had grown used to the sound but it was a sound which he shouldn't have been hearing at four AM in the morning when he was the only one awake and he wasn't moving.

His suspicions were confirmed a moment later when a dark figure walked past the doorway, their movement slow and lazy as though they had all the time in the world to do what they wanted.

Sam moved swiftly across the room; position himself so he would be out of sight. He swallowed, his brain flooding him with memories of his hand to hand training which had been drummed into him by his father and brother for as long as he could remember. Whoever it was who was moving around his apartment would seriously regret it. Sam would make sure of that.

He breathed out silently through his mouth, keeping his breathing slow and steady, his muscles loosening ready for the upcoming fight.

The door next to him pushed inwards as the figure walked through, head moving around as though he was looking for something.

Sam didn't wait, stepping up silently behind the smaller man and grabbing his shoulder, fingers tightening painfully against the leather jacket. A flicker of recognition flooded him but it disappeared when the man twisted easily out of his grip, his arm coming up and smacking Sam's hand away from his body. Sam barely had time to blink before the man's other hand was coming straight at his face causing Sam to duck before the blow broke his nose. The man twisted again, grabbing Sam's arm, using the grip to spin Sam around to face him before both palms slammed viciously into Sam's chest forcing him back several steps. Sam hissed the skin beneath his t-shirt stinging painfully at the contact.

Sam's eyes narrowed, anger flooding his system as he took a second to look at the man. He couldn't make out the features in the darkness but the man clearly knew what he was doing when it came to hand to hand combat, his movements smooth and steady, every limb in the correct position, every strike carefully planned. Sam licked his lips once; if he was going to win this fight then he was going to have to pull out all the stops. Failure wasn't an option for him, not with Jessica in the next room.

Sam kicked out sharply, gritting his teeth when the kick was easily blocked and he was shoved hard again, sending him stumbling out of the living room and into their small dining room.

Sam glanced up quickly, catching his first glimpse of the man's profile in the faint light coming through the partially opened curtains, his breath caught for a moment in confusion but before he could look closer the man elbowed him sharply in the face. Sam forced his mind back to the fight, feigning a stumble as he took a step back, his leg whipping out again aimed at the man's head but the strike missed as the man ducked, coming up almost instantly with a flying fist, forcing Sam into a defensive position as he blocked the move.

The man moved suddenly, his movements so fast that Sam barely had time to blink before his legs were swept out from underneath him. He grunted the air forced out of his lungs as his back collided hard with the floor beneath him. One rough hand gripping tightly on his wrist in a way that Sam knew the man could snap the bone if he desired it. The second hand resting around his neck, not hard enough to restrict Sam's breathing but strong enough to warn him who exactly held the upper hand over him and who was now in charge.

Sam sucked in some air, his body tensing beneath the holds.

"Whoa easy there tiger"

Sam froze, his body instantly going limp as he stared up at the figure holding him, his eyes wide with disbelief.

It couldn't be him and yet it was. There was no way in hell that Sam would fail to recognise the face staring down at him or fail to recognise the warm smooth voice which always sounded slightly gruff. There were too many memories attached to that voice, memories of being teased by it, scolded by it, comforted by it for that to ever happen.

Sam stared up greedily at him, his voice caught in his throat.

Dean was here.

His brother looked different from the last time he had seen him in that hotel room in Arizona. Physically Sam could see that he looked near enough the same. The dark blond hair slightly longer then Sam remembered. The face aging slightly giving it strength of character which had been missing before, the skin tanned golden by the sun. His smile was the same warm cocky 'I can do anything because I'm Dean Winchester' smile which Sam remembered from his childhood, the same smile which equally annoyed and comforted him.

It was the look in Dean's green eyes which were different and yet Sam couldn't quite figure out what the change was his eyes looked mature as though Dean had grown up quickly since Sam had been gone. The look was friendly and affectionate as they stared at each other.

"Dean?" Sam finally stated, surprise in his voice as he broke the silence which was threatening to continue unless one of them spoke.

Dean laughed, his eyes lighting up, looking almost bright green in the faded light. Sam felt his brother's fingers tighten around his wrist briefly. The touch reassuring, the same way it had been when Sam was younger and Dean had tried to reassure him after each hunt that he was still here. He would always reach out, fingers curling around Sam's wrist and squeezing to show Sam through touch that Dean was alive and was still with him.

Sam focused on Dean's smile, the infrequent genuine Dean Winchester smile which was as rare as some endangered animals, Dean's eyes crinkled at the corner as his smile widened, two dimples appearing in his cheeks, straight white teeth glistening in the darkness. Sam tilted his head slightly, trying to remember the last time he had seen that smile. Normally Dean would bare his teeth in the parody of a smile, his eyes remaining wary and watchful. Dean's eyes always looked watchful and thoughtful in a way that was unnerving at times. No one but Sam seemed to notice though; they were all taken in by his brother's natural charisma which seemed to ooze out of his pores.

Sam pushed the memories from his head, instead focusing on the important question.

What the hell was Dean doing in his apartment in the early hours of the morning? In fact what was Dean doing in California? Was he on a hunt?

If memory served Sam correctly his brother wasn't the greatest fan of the sunshine state, he never complained when their father dragged them there for a hunt but the expression on his face, the way his nose would wrinkle up in distaste and the way he would cross his arms over his chest as he slumped back in his seat made his feelings perfectly clear.

Sam didn't understand why Dean disliked the place, he had always loved it. He loved the people, he loved the sun, and he loved the whole atmosphere of the place which was part of his reasoning behind choosing Stanford for his University.

"You scared the crap out of me" he said. Dean tilted his head slightly, observing him for a moment before he spoke again.

"Well that's because you're out of practice" Sam's eyes narrowed when Dean's genuine smile twisted into a teasing grin which didn't reflect in his eyes, his voice taking on a taunting edge to it. Sam reacted instantly seeing that Dean was off guard. He grabbed his brother's hand at his throat, tanking it away as he ignored Dean's sudden startled look. He slammed his heel into Dean's upper back and twisted sharply, reversing their positions so Dean's back smacked into the floor with a painful sounding thud. Sam shifted so his body weight was lying partially on Dean, making it difficult for the older man to move. "Or perhaps not" Dean corrected him self, his eyes wide as he gave a breathless laugh.

Sam stared down at him, patting his hand twice against Dean's arm, the same way they had done when they were children to indicate that a fight had been won and it was time to concede.

"Alright, alright you win" Dean grumbled, glaring up at Sam. "Now get off of me, you weigh a fucking ton or something"

Sam smirked at his brother's remark, pushing him self lightly to his feet, he absently wiped his palms down the front of his t-shirt before holding a hand out to Dean. His brother stared at his hand for a moment before rolling his eyes and taking it allowing Sam to pull him to his feet.

"Thanks" Dean muttered glancing around him. Sam licked his lips nervously once before he spoke.

"Why are you here Dean"? he demanded, a hint of steel beneath the questioning tone.

"Would you believe that I happened to be in the area and just really fancied a cold beer?" Dean answered instantly, turning his gaze to Sam with a raised eyebrow. Sam continued to stare at his brother with the same pointed questioning look. Dean searched his eyes for a moment before he sighed, reaching up and placing his hands lightly on Sam's upper arms, shaking him once as though to remind him self that Sam was standing in front of him. Sam swallowed; Dean's hands were warm through his t-shirt, sending more memories of the past racing through his brain. He remembered Dean used to always do that when he was bracing him self to tell Sam some bad news, as though his comforting touch could somehow keep the fear and emotion away from Sam.

Dean met Sam's eyes with a look which automatically placed him on high alert. Dean looked worried and if Dean looked worried then it meant that something had happened, something which Sam wouldn't want to hear.

"No" he said flatly ignoring his growing sense of unease "Now tell me what the hell you are doing here in my apartment at four in the morning Dean" Dean pulled a face before shrugging his shoulders.

"Okay" he responded after a moment, a serious look coming to his face "All right, you need answers I get that. I'm here because we've got to talk Sam."

"Uh the phone?" Sam suggested, his uneasy feeling growing with each passing second. Dean had always acted like most things were a joke, hiding everything behind his crude sense of humour and a devil may care attitude but Sam couldn't see any sign of either of those reactions today.

"Sam I've tried to call you hundreds of time and you never pick the damn phone up. What exactly would have been so different about this time unless you're telling me that you are suddenly psychic" Dean remarked, shaking his head at him. Sam hesitated for a moment, catching the hurt look in his brother's eyes before the older man hid it. He thought about denying it for a moment but there was little point. Dean could sniff a lie out the minute it left someone's mouth. He would know Sam was lying and that would piss him off. He glanced away, shifting awkwardly on the spot choosing instead to remain silent.

He could feel Dean's eyes burning into the side of his face, turning to look at him. Dean sighed, opening his mouth to speak.

"Sam? Is everything ok? I heard a thumping noise"

Sam blinked, squinting his eyes against the sudden bright artificial light which flooded the dark room; it took his a second to realise that it hadn't been Dean to speak. He glanced towards the door, surprised to see Jessica standing there, still dressed in her pyjamas with her hand still resting on the light switch to the side of her. She stared back at them both, eyes flickering between them as he mouth opened in surprise. There was a tense moment before she looked directly at Sam, hundreds of questions burning in her blue eyes, questions which demanded an answer. Sam shot her what he hoped was a reassuring look before turning his attention back to Dean.

His brother at first glance appeared to be relaxed and calm as though he had been expecting Jessica's suddenly appearance. Sam however knew him better, he could see the way his brother's muscles had tensed, ready to leap into battle if the need arose, his hand had instantly gone near his jacket, no doubt in range of one of the weapons which Dean always carried on his person. Green eyes flashed to his, a demand for an explanation in the gaze which Sam responded to instantly.

"Jess" Sam said, his voice sounding loud in the silence as his eyes flickered between the pair of them "This is Dean, Dean this is my girlfriend Jessica" he introduced, Dean's eyes stared at him, the wariness melting into an amused look as he raised an eyebrow, turning his head so he could give Jessica an appraising look. His eyes skirted her body once before focusing on her face, staring with enough intensity that Sam could see a blush tinge Jessica's cheekbones. He was about to elbow Dean in the side when the older man's expression softened slightly.

"Wait Sam, This is Dean? As in Dean your older brother Dean?" She demanded, pointing her finger at his brother as she stepped further into the room, her surprised uncomfortable look turning into a wide smile as she stopped in front of them, eyes staring at them both intently as though she was trying to pick up on any resemblance they may share with each other. Sam nodded his head in answer, his gaze going back to Dean when the older man took a step closer, fake smile firmly in place.

Sam rolled his eyes, well aware what was about to happen. His brother was a natural born flirt; he simply couldn't help him self when it came to women, something which had gotten him into trouble quite a few times when they had been growing up. He watched Dean open his mouth and wondered vaguely what lame ass chat up line would come out this time.

"That would be me" Dean responded simply, crossing his arms across his chest. "Got to be honest though, I'm kinda surprised you've even heard of me, I thought Sammy here would have kept me a big secret" his voice was light, almost amused though Sam could detect the undercurrent of some other emotion beneath it. Dean glanced back, eyes locking with Sam with a challenging look as though he was daring Sam to contradict what he had just said. Sam stared back, his mouth slightly open, unable to think of anything to say.

He felt off balanced. Not only had Dean simply appeared out of no where back into Sam's life but he was also acting differently from what Sam had always assumed he would. He had assumed that Dean would have been all over this situation like a rash, making crude jokes about how Jessica was well out of Sam's league and how he liked the smurfs or something similar.

Sam watched as a small knowing smile came to Dean's face before he turned back to look at Jessica, the smile morphing into a polite one, the same kind of smile he would give victims or witnesses when he was interviewing them, a smile designed to place them at ease and to trust him.

"He's mentioned you enough though you aren't quite how I imagined" she said after a pause, she shot Sam a quick confused look before turning back to Dean "It is kinda awesome to meet you though and be able to place a face to the name. You're taller then I thought" she commented. Dean raised an eyebrow looking vaguely amused by her comment.

"Well I'd hate to be smaller" he commented lightly, reaching up and dragging a hand through his hair, making the dark blond strands stand up. "I hope I'm not a disappointment" Sam winced at the comment remembering all the time their father had lectured them, telling them they were a disappointment. Sam had always brushed the comments off, using it to fuel his desire to get away but Dean had taken it to heart, working himself to the ground trying to regain their father's approval.

"Not at all" Jessica responded instantly, her smile suddenly becoming cheeky "It seems to me that good looks seem to run in the Winchester family" Dean smirked as Jessica took another cautious step forward, a thoughtful look on her face which automatically placed Sam on guard. He had seen that look time and time again, every time Jessica got that expression on her face it meant she had found a new project to focus her attention on, the look which indicated she had found someone to mother and fuss over. It had never bothered Sam before but he knew from experience that if anyone didn't need mothering then it was Dean, Dean who was incredibly loyal to the memory of their mother and who turned on anyone who tried to replace her in his life. Dean had been the one to take her place in Sam's life, becoming the caregiver in their family. The last thing he wanted was for his brother to turn on his girlfriend.

"Thanks" Dean remarked "You aren't too bad on the eyes either Jess" Dean grinned, a lazy teasing grin. Sam shifted, moving to the side so he could see his brother's eyes. The same eyes which always gave away everything the older man was thinking regardless of what his facial expressions were doing at the time. His brother's gaze looked torn between puzzlement and amusement at where Jessica was going with this conversation. He had clearly picked up on the change in Jessica's body language which didn't surprise Sam. Dean could glance at a person and know exactly how to handle and play then to get whatever it was he wanted.

"So if you're planning on sticking around for a few days then perhaps the three of us should go out for an evening and get some food or drink or something" she said, her voice making it clear that she wasn't asking, rather she was telling them both. "Sam mentioned once in passing that you aren't a fan of California much and as a residence I can't help but feel slightly slighted by that. We could show you all the sights and give you a proper tour. It would be fun to do"

Dean blinked, eyes meeting Sam's for a moment before he shrugged.

"Sounds good" he remarked "I got a few things to do but if I come back then we can meet up. I just need to check that we haven't made plans for anything else but if you want to give us a tour and grab food then we won't say no"

Sam stared at Dean blankly, confusion running riot in him.

Just what the hell was going on?

Was this some kind of strange ass dream or something? Did Dean and Jessica actually have a normal perfectly friendly conversation which involved little to no flirting from his brother who normally flirted with any female that moved? Who was the we Dean kept mentioning? Their Dad? It couldn't have been though because Sam knew their Dad had never cared about what they did with their spare time as long as they had wrapped up all their hunts before they did it.

"Great" Jessica now said, grinning at them both before she glanced down at herself "I'm just going to go and put something else on"

"No, no, no" Dean replied shaking his head "Don't bother, I just need to borrow your boyfriend to discuss some family business and then I'm gone. It was nice meeting you though" he smiled at her, walking back to Sam without taking his eyes away from Jessica. Sam peered closely at his face expecting to see a leering look on it, the same look he used on all Sam's past girlfriends but instead Dean looked surprisingly normal, he looked the same as he did when he was speaking to Sam about something unimportant, vaguely interested.

"You're leaving?" Jessica remarked, sounding almost disappointed.

"Yep" Dean answered with a shrug. "I've got to go after I've spoken to Sam but maybe we could do lunch like you said, I'm never one to turn down an offer from a pretty girl to eat, I'll leave my number with Sam and you can let us know the details. We are probably more flexible then you because you're students" he turned his attention to Sam. "Ready?"

"No" Sam answered, looking between his brother and girlfriend before pushing the sheer strangeness of the situation out of his mind and focusing on the important question. He moved away from Dean, walking to Jessica and stopping by her side, wrapping his arm around her waist and pulling her against him. "Not this time, whatever you have to say to me you can say in front of her as well"

Dean met his eyes for a moment, the expression in them unreadable before he spoke, the former pleasant tone he had been using with Jessica gone leaving behind a seriousness which Sam had rarely heard from Dean before. He couldn't get over how much Dean had changed in four years, something had prompted it but Sam couldn't think what it could be. All he knew was the fact that Dean seemed a great deal calmer and steadier then Sam could remember him being.

"Okay" Dean replied causing Sam to stare at him again. That was all Dean was going to say? A simple okay in response to Sam's demand? No lecture for him to have to endure about how important it was for him to keep the family secrets from people who could potentially become close to them? Dean unfolded his arms, dropping his hands to his side, his eyes looking steadily between Sam and Jessica as though he was seeing them for the first time. Whatever he saw was enough for him to turn to Sam and speak. "Um, Dad hasn't been home in a few days" he remarked, shifting awkwardly on the spot before his body stilled, the slight movement the only visible sign of his brother's agitation.

Sam felt the weight of the words hit him.

He breathed out, eyes narrowing as he shrugged his shoulders in disinterest not allowing the uneasy feeling which was blossoming in his stomach to take a firm hold.

He was beyond sick and tired of having to deal with his father's never ending issues and crap which had been plaguing them for as long as he could remember. Even when they were younger it would still be up to his brother to deal with the repercussions of it, Dean being forced to deal with shit that no child should have to deal with.

Sam knew that Dean had been the one to raise him, his stupidly stubborn brother who had put Sam before himself, focusing all his attention on him rather then himself. Sure there had been times when Dean would leave him in the motel or in various food places so he could have a break from him but that had been a rare occurrence and though Sam had bitched about it at the time he couldn't blame Dean for needing the alone time.

Dean had been the one to wake him up each morning, to give him breakfast and to make him lunch for school. He had been the one to register Sam at schools and doctors and god knows what else. If Sam needed something then Dean would get it for him, He fed him dinner, he helped him with his homework, he cared for him when he was sick, he went to meetings at the school and god knew how many other things he had done for Sam as well and never once had Sam heard Dean complain about it. He had merely accepted that Sam was his responsibility to raise and care for in their father's absence.

The thought made Sam's rage flare up.

"So?" he questioned coolly, a bitter uncaring tone coming to his voice. "He's off working overtime on a Miller time shift yet again. He'll stumble in sooner or later"

He watched as Dean ducked his head for a moment, his gaze studying the floor. Sam ignored the guilty feeling he experienced when Dean looked back up at them, a disappointed look in his eyes which made Sam's stomach squirm. He expected Dean to lecture him but the older man merely tried to force a smile onto his face, a smile which was gone before it could take hold leaving Dean with the same seriously expression that he had from before.

"Dad's on a hunting trip and he hadn't been home in a few days" Dean said after a pause, his eyes fixing on Sam with the look that Sam hated more then all the others, the look that burned deep as though Dean was ripping apart all his defences to see what lay beneath it all.

He felt Jessica shift uneasily next to him, twisting her head round so she could look at him. She had clearly picked up the change in the atmosphere which Dean's words had produced. Sam ignored her gaze, his arm tightening briefly around her before he spoke.

"Jess excuse up please, we have to go outside"

"Ok Sam" Jessica replied, pulling away from him, she took a step towards the door before stopping and looking between them, her gaze focusing on Dean who was watching Sam with a tired look on his face. "It was really nice to meet you Dean" she said, smiling when his eyes snapped to hers "Here's hoping we get to do lunch or something. I'm sure you must have tons of embarrassing Sam stories to share"

Dean nodded, a small smile coming to his face.

"That I do" he replied "It was nice meeting you as well" Sam watched as Jessica nodded, before she turned and left the room leaving the two brothers looking at each other.

"Wait here" Sam commanded grimly, waiting for Dean to make some sort of joke about Sam's poor hosting skills but instead Dean remained silent, nodding at Sam to show he understood before looking away, his eyes moving around the living room with vague interest.

Sam's face twitched for a moment in confusion before he turned and headed back to his bedroom, grabbing the first pair of jeans that he could find. He pulled them on as well as a hoodie knowing that it would be cold outside at this time. The sooner Sam dealt with the issue with his Dad the sooner he could return to his normal life.

He glanced up as Jessica walked into the room from their small en suite; she stopped, tilting her head to the side when she spotted Sam.

"Sam-"she began, stopping when he held up his hand.

"We can talk when I get back Jess" he said firmly. Jessica opened her mouth to say something to him but stopped her self with an uneasy expression instead sinking onto their bed, her large blue eyes fixed on him with a look of concern. "Look I'm not going to be long, we're only going outside. You should try and get some sleep or something" he suggested, leaning down and stealing a quick kiss from her.

"I think I'll wait until you're back" she replied. Sam shrugged, straightening his body and headed out of the room, closing the door behind him. He stepped back into the living room and stopped in surprise when he realised that his brother was on a mobile, talking to someone. Sam frowned, who could Dean be talking to at this time in the morning? Dean's back was turned away from the doorway, facing Sam's bookcase.

Sam rested against the doorframe and listened into the conversation.

"I don't know Tans, this is probably a big mistake" Dean was saying, his voice sounding troubled. "It's not like it was you know, I didn't really think it-" Dean's voice trailed off clearly listening to whatever the other person was saying. He nodded his head, twisting on the spot, his eyes instantly landing on Sam. "Tans, Sam is back. I've got to go" he stated before hanging up the phone. Sam watched as Dean slipped the phone into his jean pocket, walking towards Sam, his eyes flickering to him before he walked past him without speaking a word heading towards the front door.

Sam shook his head before turning and following Dean out of the door, waiting until they were moving down the stairs towards the car park before he spoke, his words rushing together in his haste to get them out.

"I mean come on Dean" he said, frustration leaking into his voice "You can't just break into my home in the middle of the night and actually expect me to just drop everything I'm doing to hit the road with you to find Dad. That's not the way things work anymore. I have my own life here now"

"You're not hearing me Sammy" Dean replied, not bothering to halt his movements, he sounded weary and resigned as though this was the conversation he had been expecting. "Dad's missing" he said, looking over his shoulder so he could meet Sam's eyes "I need you to help me find him."

Sam reached up and ran his hand through his hair in a frustrated, jerky movement as he tried to choose his next words carefully.

"Dean you remember the Poltergeist in Amherst?" Sam demanded "Or the Devil's gate in Clifton? Dad was missing then too. He is always missing and then he always turns up completely fine" he pointed out, his gaze fixed on Dean's averted face. He watched as his brother ignored him, his eyes fixed on the shadows looking for anything which might indicate they weren't alone. Sam wouldn't have been surprised if Dean had an array of weapons beneath his leather jacket suited for every possible scenario that the older man could think of. If Dean had a motto in life then it would have been 'never unprepared'.

Sam almost smacked into Dean when his brother came to a suddenly stop on the stairs, turning round so he was facing Sam, his face fixed in the strange steady expression from before.

"Not for this long" Dean stated bluntly, his face falling into a slight frown as he searched Sam's eyes intently in the darkness. "Are you coming with me or not?" he demanded.

"I'm not" Sam answered seriously, almost wincing at the disappointed look which flooded Dean's eyes. God it had been a long time since he had seen that look directed at him. The last time had been in Ohio when he had told their father during a particularly heated row that he hated him.

"Why the hell not?" Dean asked his eyebrow rising in a perplexed look, emotions swirling in his eyes, Sam waited for Dean to blast him but instead his brother remained silently clearly waiting for Sam to answer his question. Sam swallowed, thankful that Dean would at least give him the chance to explain, if it had been their father then it would only have escalated into another row.

"I swore that I was done with hunting for good Dean" he answered lowly.

"Well this ain't exactly hunting now is it Sam" Dean pointed out. "This is more about you and me hunting Dad down to wherever the hell he's gone to and bringing him back home, hopefully without a shit load of bloodshed involved" Sam narrowed his eyes watching as Dean reached up and pinched the bridge of his nose, he took a deep breath as though he was trying to control him self, Sam waited patiently. Getting Dean to participate in anything which the older man considered emotional was always going to be a challenge, experience had taught Sam that if he didn't bring attention to the fact it was happened then Dean often wouldn't realise until it was too late. "I know growing up wasn't all that great, at times it was complete and utter shit but it wasn't as bad as you make it out to be either Sam."

"Not that bad?" Sam repeated in disbelief, staring at his brother. "Dean when I told Dad I was scared of the thing in my closet, he went and got me a .45 and told me to shoot the damn thing the next time I saw it."

"What exactly did you expect him to do?" Dean asked in annoyance, his eyes flashing in the faint light. "Read you a bed time and kiss you goodnight? Please Sam, you knew before you went to the man what his reaction would be because it was always the same reaction. Here's a weapon, shoot first and ask question later, don't come back until its dead. That was always Dad solution to things."

Sam swallowed hard; lowering his eyes from Dean's surprised by the faint bitterness in Dean's voice. Dean stopped by the door leading out of the building, waiting in silence until Sam looked back at him. Sam felt a flicker of anger grow in him.

"I was nine years old Dean, he was meant to tell me not to afraid of the dark or tell me that it was just my imagination playing tricks on me and that I was safe. I didn't expect him to hand me a damn gun. You know I expecting something which a normal father would have done."

"Bullshit" Dean snapped. "You weren't a stupid kid Sam, even at nine you were annoyingly smart and you knew Sam, you knew even back then that we weren't normal. You always bitch about how I never treat you like an adult and how I sugar coat everything for you? Well congrats baby brother this is me treating you like a grown up. You aren't a kid anymore, its time to face up to things."

"Dean I- what-"Sam began, his voice trailing off as he stared at Dean, his mouth slightly open, he forced it closed, licking his lip nervously as he ducked his head slightly. He couldn't remember the last time Dean had argued back with him, there had always been small little spats when they were younger but that was normal, no one could be with each other twenty four seven and not have rows but when it came to issues about their past or their father then Dean tended to remain silent, allowing Sam his angry rants to get it out of his system. The most Dean did was roll his eyes, he didn't normally call Sam out on his argument and argue back. Something had changed enough in Dean that he wasn't willing to play the peacemaker anymore.

Sam blinked when Dean continued to speak his voice rough with emotions, he sounded almost disappointed.

"And as for your comment about not being scared of the dark, are you stupid? Had Stanford turned you soft or something Sam? Of course you should be afraid of the fucking dark; you know what is out there, waiting in the shadows, looking for prey."

"I'm not stupid" Sam said heatedly "I haven't forgotten anything Dean but still even you have to admit that the way we grew up after Mum died and Dad became obsessed with his personal one man vendetta against the thing that killed her was completely fucked up"

Dean kept his gaze for a moment, his mouth moving into a thin line before he made a huffing sound, turning his head away from Sam so he could glare at the metal door.

"But you know what Dean" Sam continued determined to make his words penetrate his brother's thick skull. "we still haven't found the damn thing which killed her so instead we just drive around American, killing everything we find hoping that maybe just maybe this will be the time we strike lucky and you know what Dean we never fucking do."

Sam glared at Dean's averted face willing his brother to speak. All he wanted was for Dean to admit just once that their childhood had been completely messed up and that Sam's view on their father wasn't far fetched but realistic. He knew Dean was smart but his brother just acted plain dumb when it came to John Winchester, he didn't understand how his older brother could have such blind faith in a man like him when he had done nothing in Sam's eyes which warranted Dean's unshakable loyalty.

Why Dean accepted that the way John treated them; as soldiers was a normal way to be raised. How could Dean think that raising Sam in John's absence when he was only four years older was an okay thing to happen? Sam could still remember the times when Dean would come to meetings with his teachers, brushing off their concerns and questions about where their father was with practice ease. He could see the concern in their eyes but there had been nothing they could do. Sam was always turned out perfectly, his clothes fit and were always neat and clean, all his homework was completed, he always had a lunch with him and all of that had been down to Dean, never down to their father.

How could Dean believe that them being taught to use every type of weapon available to man from the age of five was a good, healthy life skill to possess. Dean certainly had never said anything to contradict the idea that he disagreed with the way they had been raised. Anytime Sam pressed the question Dean would merely shrug his shoulders and change the subject.

Dean turned back to look at him, a steady knowing look on his face. Sam frowned meeting Dean's calm green eyes. It was as though Dean had flicked a switch in himself banishing the anger as though it had never existed or escaped his control.

"Well you've got a point there Sammy" he said. "They aren't the thing which killed mum but if killing a lot of sons of bitches who get off on killing and hurting people means saving a hell of a lot of people then I'm kinda down with that. I don't regret killing anything which I have. What are you telling me Sam? That we should only go after the thing which killed Mum? That perhaps we should sit back and attempt to be normal, going to University and having full time jobs while people around us die? What if it was someone you knew, like Jess for example would you rather we sat back and did fuck all while she was killed because it wasn't the yellow eyed demon?" Dean asked intently, his voice low and intense, eyes hardening as he waited for Sam's answer.

Sam made a disbelieving sound as Dean effortlessly turned Sam argument on its head. His brother already knew Sam's answer to that question.

"You can't think that this life style is what Mum would have wanted for us if she was still alive?" Sam demanded, pulling out the one trump card he held over his brother, Dean's love for their mother. He watched as his brother breathed out noisily, rolling his eyes as he slammed open the door with his palm and stormed out into the cool night air. Sam shivered before he followed him still speaking "The weapon training, melting silver into bullets and god only knows what else we did in the name of a hunt. We were raised like fucking warriors Dean" Sam complained coming up behind Dean and stepping to his side, matching his stride to his brother's.

Dean stopped, staring at the ground for a moment, his breathing misting the air in front of him.

"Yeah the thing is Sam we won't ever know what Mum wanted for us" he said sighing as he turned his head to look at Sam. "For all we know she could have done exactly the same thing as Dad did if he had been the one to die instead. Who the hell knows? And yeah maybe we were trained as warriors but what can you do? It can't be changed now so why the hell bitch about it so much. What are you going to do here Sam? Are you going to turn your back on Dad because you're pissed at his lack of parenting skills? You've decided that you're just going to remain here in California, soaking up the rays and living some sort of normal apple pie life? Is that it?" Dean demanded coldly.

There was a brief silence before Sam forced himself to answer his brother's accusations.

"No Dean, not normal but safe" Dean took a step back away from him, searching his face with an almost pitying expression as he shook his head.

"Safe doesn't exist for us Sam" he said flatly, reaching up and running a hand through his hair "It never has and I severely doubt it ever will. You can hide here all you want, you can study and become a lawyer and marry your girl but one day something Supernatural will come here because it always does eventually come and you better hope to hell that you can deal with it because otherwise its going to rip your world apart and its going to enjoy every second of it because they thrive on people's pain and despair Sam, it turns them on." Sam swallowed trying to ignore the visuals Dean's words brought to his mind, flashes of imagery from dreams he was desperate to forget "I'm guessing this desire for safety was the reason you ran in the first place? You know when you turned your back on me? He asked, crossing his arms over his chest as he looked away from Sam to stare across the road.

Sam stared at the side of his brother's face, his thoughts whirling around his head making him wince at the pain. Did Dean really believe that Sam had turned his back on him? Had he believed it the whole time that Sam had been away? He had always assumed that Dean would see things from his point of view.

"I was just going away to college Dean, I wasn't turning my back on you" he placed emphasis on the last word watching as Dean straightened, turning back to him, his eyes expressionless in a way which made Sam feel uneasy. "It was never about leaving you Dean; Dad was the one who told me not to come back if I walked out the door. You were there remember, you saw it all. I was merely following the man's orders for once, he told me to stay away and that is what I'm doing"

"One day Sam you're gonna have to face up to your own choices which you made" Dean said slowly "I get you, I know you get all emo and assume that no one does and that you're the black sheep of the family and life has been so tough on you. I get it, it hasn't exactly been a bed of roses for me either, all you can do is deal with it and accept it. If you can't accept it then you might as well lie down and let the next supernatural thing which comes around kill you, save you the time and effort" he said. "This isn't about our messed up childhoods. This is about Dad and the fact is that hate or love him the man is our father and he needs our help. I've got one of my guts feelings Sam, something isn't right"

Sam remained silent watching Dean carefully. He had grown up watching his brother develop into an amazing Hunter, probably one of the best ones Sam had ever seen and through watching him Sam had learnt one very important lesson which had saved his life on more then one occasion. If Dean Winchester told you he had a bad feeling then you damn well better believe that something bad was coming.

He bit the inside of his mouth, moving awkwardly on the spot as he felt his own resolve waver under the strength of Dean's conviction.

"Dean I-"

"Look what it comes down to is this Sam. I need your help because I can't do all of this by myself" Dean stated, his eyes glancing away as he licked his lips as though he was embarrassed by his confession.

"Yes you can" Sam replied simply. Dean shrugged, looking back to Sam.

"Maybe once I could Sam but things are different now and quite frankly I don't want to do this alone" Sam sighed silently knowing he was trapped. If it had anyone else from his past coming for his help then he would have kicked them out of the door with a threat to end their life if they showed their faces again but it wasn't anyone else, it was Dean and Sam couldn't let his brother down. Not this time.

He breathed out deeply and met Dean's eyes, quirking an eyebrow at him.

"What was he hunting?"

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Author Note – **Yay finally finished! Each chapter will be from a different view point and I've got the next few chapters already written and most of them are long chapters as well… I don't think I've written such long chapters before. Anyway hopefully you enjoyed it **


	5. Chapter 5

Reunion

By

Ava Brett

Disclaimer

**None of the characters who you recognise belong to me, I am merely using them for my own entertainment purposes, if however it's a character you don't recognise then chances are they fo belong to me**

Author Note

**So this is the big chapter when Dean first mentions having a wife… and having a kid. Yep that's right when I said things were different I meant it because that was the whole point of this challenge which my friend handed to me, taunting me by saying I couldn't do it. She clearly knows me so well. The only way Dean would change would be if he had his own family and well he does.**

**Before you turn off give it a go, if you like Daddy Dean then you should definitely continue reading because I'm quite a few chapter ahead of this one and trust me when I say there are several cute moments coming.**

**Sam and Dean's relationship is as important as ever, its just more difficult because they need to figure out where they stand with each other and it isn't going to be a quick thing either.**

**Anyway I really hope you enjoy this story because I'm really enjoying writing it!**

Summary

**A/U – When Sam left for Stanford it never occurred to him that life would go on without him, now his brother is back, needing his help in locating their father but he isn't alone. Sam need to figure out where he stands now and decide once and for all whether he is a Winchester or not.**

Chapter Summary

**Dean tells Sam the truth about him self…**

Overall Romance

**Dean Winchester / Tansy Winchester (OFC), Sam Winchester / Jessica Moore**

Chapter Romances

**Mentions of Dean Winchester / Tansy Winchester (OFC), Sam Winchester / Jessica Moore**

* * *

Chapter Four

**1st November 2005**

**04:15 AM**

**The Car park of Sam Winchester and Jessica Moore's Apartment**

**25th Broadway Avenue**

**Palo Alto,**

**California**

* * *

**Dean Winchester Point of View**

Dean Winchester searched his brother's eyes for a moment before he breathed out a silent sigh of relief. He closed his eyes briefly saying a silent prayer of thanks to a God he didn't believe in that Sam was at least giving Dean the chance to explain things to him. His brother had always been stupidly stubborn, more often then not believing himself to be right and others to be wrong. Dean had been certain for most of their conversation that Sam was going to send him on his way without helping him.

Dean wasn't blind, he was well aware that Sam's and their father's relationship wasn't always easy shifting from vague respect to down right hostility often leaving Dean in the uncomfortable role of peacemaker while trying not to make each of them believe he was supporting the other person. It was exhausting, Dean had always been aware that Sam shared a healthy level of anger and resentment towards the old man but he had been harbouring the faint hope that time apart would have reminded Sam of all the good things their Dad had done for them instead of being almost completely blinded by the bad points. It was a forlorn hope but one which he had clung to.

If anything however Sam's anger seemed to have grown in the time they had been apart though Dean couldn't figure out why. This distance had been what Sam had wanted after all. It had been his idea to leave the family to go to University, what could he possibly be pissed about this time round?

Dean bit the inside of his lip glancing away from Sam. Whatever it was he would leave it to the pair of them to thrash it out, for once he wasn't going to get involved.

"I parked Baby over here" Dean remarked steadily, lifting his hand and waving it in the direction he meant. The last thing he needed was for Sam to realise where his thoughts were heading not when he knew that it would lead to yet another row which Dean didn't have the energy to deal with at that moment, not when there were more important things which needed his time "It be better if we spoke over there so no one overhears anything."

Sam nodded his head in agreement, his facial expression closed off in a way which made Dean want to climb back into the impala and drive off without his brother. He felt bad enough having to come here in the first place without having to deal with his brother attitude.

"Still have her I see" Sam suddenly remarked breaking the silence between them. His voice didn't sound normal by any stretch of the imagination but Dean would take anything he could and roll with it.

"Of course I do" he replied brightly, coming to a stop by a gleaming black car, He reached out and patted her roof fondly, he really did have some amazing memories of this car, especially of the back seat. "She's still good as ever and you can't beat the classics Sam. She's worth a mint now." He took his hand away from the cool metal and led his brother to the back of the car, inserting the car key into the lock and twisting it until the sound of a click broke the silence.

He pulled it open, a small smile quirking his lips when he spotted a small blue elephant stuffed at the back, partially hidden by a blanket. He had wondered where that had gotten to. A quick sweep of the space revealed that it was exactly how it should be, bare of everything but the essentials; a blanket, a road map and some random old papers. The last thing Dean needed was for anything about his car to look out of the ordinary, especially if there was the chance that it might come under police scrutiny if they ever happened to stop him.

Dean reached down and pulled open the spare tire compartment, automatically propping it open with one of the sawed off shotguns he kept near the top of the pile for this very purpose. Sam leaned against the left hand side of the car looking down at the pile of weapons with a raised eyebrow and a look of surprise on his face. The look amused Dean, no doubt his brother had noticed that Dean's weapon collection had almost tripled in size since the last time that Sam had seen it.

"Alright" he said to himself, rubbing his hands together in an attempt to get some warmth back into his fingers, he had always been under the impression that California was meant to be hot and sunny, not freezing cold. "Let's see, where did I put that thing?" he leaned further into the trunk, sifting through weapons with a frown on his face.

"So when Dad left to go on this hunt why didn't you go with him?" Sam asked curiously. Dean hesitated for a moment before shrugging his shoulders.

"We rarely work together now Sam, I normally just report in daily with him so he knows that I'm still alive and kicking. When Dad went on this mission I was down in New Orleans dealing with some crazy voodoo shit" he answered absently, glancing at Sam from the corner of his eyes just in time to catch Sam's disbelieving look.

"Wait so you're telling me that Dad actually lets you hunt solo now?" Sam demanded his voice a mixture of amusement and incredulity. Dean glanced up at the tone with a slight frown on his face as he met Sam's hazel eyes.

"I'm twenty six dude" he pointed out briefly, giving Sam a long look before turning his attention back to his search. He searched through the weapons for a moment before he made a sound of satisfaction when he found his pile of case files, hidden under a stash of holy water. He pulled the entire stack out.

"Wait are those all cases you have to do?" Sam asked enquiringly. Dean nodded his head, looking through them until he found the one he wanted, pulling it out he stuffed the rest back where they had been, his eyes lingering over the mess with a displeased look. He was seriously going to have to give the back of his baby a good clean and probably update his weapon inventory; he had certainly picked up a few new ones recently. He might even take the chance to build a small alcove where he could stick the files so he knew where they were straight away.

"Alright here we go. This is what I wanted to show you" he remarked, standing up straight and opening the file, his eyes scanned his neat notes for a second before he spoke "So the last time I spoke to Dad on the phone he was telling me that he had gone here to check out this two lane blacktop, which was just outside Jericho here in good old California" he pulled out a missing poster from beneath his notes and handed it over to Sam, waiting for his brother to take it before he continued with his explanation. "According to the police records and notes this guy" he pointed at the poster Sam was holding. "Went missing a month ago, they found his car in the middle of the road but no sign of the dude, he was completely MIA and when I say MIA I mean that he hasn't so much taken a dollar out of his bank account since then" Sam nodded looking down at the picture with a thoughtful look.

"Perhaps he's been kidnapped, it tends to happen a lot here in California" Sam responded glancing at Dean. Dean resisted rolling his eyes with difficulty, sometimes he wondered whether the younger man thought he was stupid or something. Did he think that both he and their father wouldn't have checked out that angle before hightailing it over there? He pushed his annoyance down, the last thing he needed was to drive Sam away before he got him to agree to come with him.

"Yeah maybe if it had been a one off then I'd agree with you" Dean stated, surprised to see the sudden intense look which came to Sam's eyes at his words. He didn't understand it so he simply ignored it carrying on speaking. "But here is another one from April" he pointed out, pulling out the other missing posters and placing them down, using his palm to spread them out so Sam could see them "And then another in December 04, 03, 98, 92. There have been ten of them over the past twenty years" he looked up at Sam pleased to see some reaction from him even if it was only to raise his eyebrow.

Dean lent across and gathered the missing poster from the trunk before grabbing the one Sam still held in his hand and placed them back in the folder, speaking as he did so.

"All men, all went missing in the same five mile stretch of road."

He threw the folder back on the others before reaching up and pulling down the long back container which held his multiple selections of maps in. He selected the right one, rolling it open before pointing to the area where Jericho was.

"It started happening more and more frequently so Dad decided to go and have a dig around. That was three weeks ago and I haven't heard from his since, he hasn't been answering my calls and he hadn't been ringing and it's not like him. Then yesterday I got this voicemail" he reached out and grabbed his tape recorder, trying to ignore the familiar gnawing sensation in the pit of his stomach as he looked towards Sam, hitting the play button as he did.

He nodded slightly, licking his lips nervously at the sound of his father's strained voice.

"Dean… something big is starting to happen… I need to try and figure out what's going on. It may… be very careful Dean. We're all in danger."

He clicked the stop button, his gaze fixed on Sam's attentive expression as his brother stared intently at the tape recorder, his mind clearly skipping over several possibilities. Dean hoped hearing their father's voice would be enough to convince him to do the right thing.

"You know there is EVP on that recording?" Sam said speaking for the first time in a few minutes.

"Not bad Sammy" Dean praised with a slight smile "Kinda like riding a bike isn't it?" for a moment he considered driving it home to Sam that he would always be a Hunter whether he wanted to be or not but he ignored the impulse. "Alright" he said getting back to business, teasing his brother could wait until he got his opinion on what he had found. "So I did the usual, I slowed the message, ran it through gold ware, eliminated the residual hiss and this was what I was left with." He hit the play butting again.

_"I can never go home" _

Dean ignored the woman's creepy voice; he had listened to the tape enough times both with the noise and without it trying to figure out what warning his father had been trying to give him. He watched Sam react to the message, Dean's brain running at full speed trying to eliminate possible threats and scenarios he could have been talking about. It had been one of the reasons that he had allowed himself to be talked into going to Sam in the first place so he could see with his own two eyes that his brother was safe and healthy.

From what he had seen upstairs it appeared that Sam was doing just fine without them all.

"Never go home" Sam repeated softly. Dean threw the tape recorder onto the files before removing the shotgun and lowering other lids in the trunks down. He glanced over his shoulder making sure they were still alone before he turned, resting his ass against the cool metal, shoving his hands into his jacket pockets.

He could still see the indecision in Sam's face and the sight of it annoyed him.

He wished he could give his brother the time he clearly needed to wrestle through all his emotional bullshit but time was the one thing which Dean no longer had. He needed to get back to his motel, he needed to get some sleep and he needed to leave early in the morning to get to Jericho because he was going whether Sam was in the car with him or not. His Dad was in danger and there was no way in hell that he was going to leave him in that situation, not if he could help it anyway.

There was one more thing he could try.

"You know Sam" he began softly, staring into the distance away of Sam's eyes fixing onto him. "You've been gone for over three years and after that first year I haven't bothered you, I haven't asked you for a thing-"he stopped and shrugged unwilling to continue with the speech he had planned. If Sam was really so adamant that he wasn't coming then Dean wasn't going to force him. Gone were the days when he had been reliant on his brother to give his life some purpose and meaning.

Sam breathed out, his eyes flickering to one of the windows before looking back at Dean, a look of determination coming to his face.

"All right" he said "I'll go with you and I'll help you find him" Dean nodded, surprise coursing through his at Sam's answer, he had expected Sam to say no. "But I have to be back first thing Monday. So you just wait here and I'll pack a bag" he began walking back the way they had come.

"Sam" Dean called after him "What's happening on Monday?" he asked curiously. Sam turned back to him with a panicked looked etched onto his face as he clearly chose his words carefully.

"I have this-"he paused for a moment "This interview I have to attend"

"A job interview?" Dean queried in surprise. "Sam this is kinda important can't you skip it?" he asked "Or maybe get them to push it back?" Sam stared at Dean as though he thought he was insane, he shook his head clearly clearing his thoughts.

"It's not a job interview Dean, It's an interview for law school and it would be my whole future handed to me on a plate if I got it so no I can't exactly reschedule it"

"So you've decided on Law School then?" Dean responded "Last time you were thinking of heading the classics route if memory serves me right"

"That was then and this is now and I've decided to become a Lawyer. A lot of things have changed in two years Dean" Sam remarked bluntly. A slight smile came to Dean's face. His brother would make a good lawyer; God knows he had stubbornly fought his corner against their father for yeas so he has plenty of experience already.

"They certainly have Sam" he responded simply, Sam shot him a sharp look, annoyance, affection and curiosity warring in his eyes.

"So do we have a deal or not?" the younger man demanded.

"I'll have you back here for nine AM on Monday morning, interviews for scholarships normally begin at eleven so it will give you time to shower, suit up and review your notes before you have to go in there and sell yourself" Sam's mouth fell open and Dean felt a small amount of pleasure at surprising Sam. He lifted his arm and glanced at his watch. "We aren't leaving now. I'll be back for you at six so make sure you're ready for them. I've got to get back to the motel and pack up" he stated dropping his arm.

"You mentioned a motel room before, I don't get why you have one, why didn't you just come straight here?"

Dean stared at him for a moment before he sighed, clearly know was the chance he had been looking for.

"Look Sam, there's something I should tell you before we leave" Sam looked instantly wary, sticking his hands into the pocket of his hoodie.

"What?" he asked Dean looked up and met Sam's worried eyes, taking a deep breath before he spoke.

"I'm married"

There was a long heavy silence after his words; Dean waited watching as a shocked laugh escaped Sam's mouth as he dragged a hand roughly through his hair.

"You're joking right?" Sam demanded. Dean shook his head, lifting up his left hand, his white gold wedding band glinting in the faint light. Sam stared at it, his mouth moving soundlessly before he looked up meeting Dean's eyes.

"You're married" he stated flatly "Who to? When? Where the hell was my fucking invite Dean, how the hell could you not have invited me to your own wedding? Did you even fucking try to invite me or was this some sort of punishment for going to college."

"I rang your mobile every single day Sam for a month straight" Dean responded, keeping his voice calm with an effort. "But you never picked up or bothered to return my calls. I sent an invite to the last address I had for you literally begging you to get in contact with me only to have it returned to me stating that you didn't live there anymore and hadn't left a forwarding address. I emailed you and you didn't respond, I texted you and got the same thing. Hell Sam I even came down here and physically looked for you. I was even going to hack into the school systems to find you except the stupid ass thing had broken down so don't you dare stand there and tell me I didn't try to invite you. I postpone my own god damn wedding for you. You wouldn't have missed it if you had just gotten off your high horse and answered your damn mobile once in a while. The only reason I even found you were here was by pulling in a favour and getting a friend to hack into the school system to get your address!"

Dean breathed out nosily, reaching up and running a tired hand across his eyes before he lowered it and met Sam's eyes directly.

"You're my brother Sam and I think I've proven in the past what you mean to me but gone are the days when I'll drop everything for you. I have my own responsibilities and family now and so do you, so I guess your little goal of us becoming less dependant on each other worked after all. Congratulations"

"Dean I-"Sam began a look of pure guilt and dismay mingled with disbelief came to his face.

"Just save it Sam" Dean advised "It's over with now; maybe if we renew our vows you can come to that and be the best man." Dean offered knowing it was a lame consolation even as he said it but it was about time his brother realised that there was consequences to his actions. Dean wasn't going to be around to clean up his messes anymore.

"Who- who was your best man?" Sam asked weakly after a pause.

"Dad" Dean replied frankly.

"Oh" came the hurt reply as Sam dropped his eyes to study the floor. Dean shifted on the spot awkwardly cursing his brother's stubbornness. All of this could have been avoided if he had only picked up his phone just once. "So who is she then?" Sam asked "Your wife" he hesitated over the word clearly struggling to say it.

"Her name is Tansy" Dean replied "Her Dad is a Hunter who occasionally worked with Dad when we were in the area to go after the bigger hunts. You've probably met her though I doubt you remember it, I was fifteen when we first met and she was nearly fourteen. We sort of hit it off and did the whole long distance dating thing; you know phoning each other, emailing that sort of thing, we hooked up properly each time we'd meet up again. Anyway we met up nearly four years ago, just after you had left and things just happened. We decided to stay together and began hunting together and one thing led to another and we began dating. Then we married and then-"he stopped waiting until Sam looked up from the floor to look at him.

"And then?" Sam prompted, a look of dread settling on his face as he waited for Dean to drop the next bombshell on him. God Dean hated having to tell him about it this way but what other choice did he have.

"Then James was born"

"You're a father?" Sam said flatly, his face paling at his words even as his expression went blank. Dean nodded.

"He's two and a half now" Dean answered "They are both currently at the motel which was why we needed a room so James could sleep in a bed."

"And they are coming with us to search for Dad?" Sam demanded roughly. Dean nodded.

"It would take too long to take them home and come back here, we need to strike while the clues are still fresh" Dean responded. Sam snorted.

"Of course it is. Let me guess Dean, the family who hunts together stays together is that it?" he asked coldly. Dean held onto his temper through sheer will alone, he felt his eyes narrow.

"Stop assuming things" he snapped "The only reason James is here is because we were in the area visiting Tansy's older brother David. I would never bring my child on a god damn Hunt"

"Well you know if you already have Tansy who you say is a Hunter then what exactly do you need me for? Sound to me like you've already got a little rescue team as it is."

"You know why Sam, you're my brother and this is a family crisis. When shit happens to this family we deal with it and we deal with it together the same way we always have done. I assume you haven't forgotten that lesson have you?" Sam glared at him. Dean knew his brother was lashing out because he was hurt but god he wanted to hit him.

"Hell why don't I just bring Jess along for the trip, we could take this opportunity to initiate her into the family business" Sam snapped.

"Why don't you then" Dean snapped back "I don't care whether you bring her or not, that's your choice. She can come if she wants and see what we do or she can stay here and bake god damn cookies that's your choice not mine." Dean let out an angry breathe running his hand through his hair, calming himself down before he spoke again. "Look Sam, I know this is a lot of shit to dump on you and I don't expect you to be able to deal with it all right now. I mean Dad is missing, I'm married and a father but this is the real world and you keep telling me you're old enough to deal with it so deal with it. Go back upstairs to your apartment, figure out if you're bringing Jess or not and if you aren't sort out a believable story, she looks smart so she won't believe any old shit you tell her. I'll be back for you at six"

He expected Sam to argue with him but instead his brother remained silent. Dean reached out and placed his hand on Sam's tense shoulder, squeezing down lightly on the muscle in a comforting gesture before he turned and climbed back into the car, turning the engine on and backing out of his space, he twisted the steering wheel and began driving away.

A glance in the mirror showed Sam standing in the same position looking after him with a lost expression on his face which tore at Dean's heart.

God he hoped this wasn't a massive mistake he was making.

* * *

Author Note

**Hopefully you liked it!**

**Lots more to come so stay tuned **

**Thanks for taking the time to read, it much appreciated.**


	6. Chapter 6

Reunion

By

Ava Brett

Disclaimer

**If you recognise the characters then they don't belong to me, if you don't then they do **

Author Note

**I'm so thankful that people are enjoying this story. It means everything to me when I see a review for this story!**

**Thank you so much!**

Overall Summary

**A/U – When Sam left for Stanford it never occurred to him that life would go on without him, now his brother is back, needing his help in locating their father but he isn't alone. Sam need to figure out where he stands now and decide once and for all whether he is a Winchester or not.**

Chapter Summary

**Sam thinks about what he's been told…**

Overall Romance

**Dean Winchester / Tansy Winchester (OFC), Sam Winchester / Jessica Moore**

Chapter Romances

**Mentions of Dean Winchester / Tansy Winchester (OFC), Sam Winchester / Jessica Moore**

* * *

Chapter Six

1st November 2005

04.36

Sam Winchester and Jessica Moore's Rented Apartment

25th Broadway Avenue

Palo Alto,

California

* * *

Sam swallowed, staring after the red taillights of the impala with wide unseeing eyes; his focus turned inwards trying to keep his breathing steady. He felt as though he had been punched in the gut, mind whirling as it tried helplessly to process everything he had learnt from his brother in fifteen minutes. He licked his lips nervously, dropping his gaze to study the stone ground beneath his feet.

Out of all the bombshells Dean had dropped on him, his older brother revealing that he was not only married to a girl that Sam couldn't remember having heard of let alone met but that he was also a father to a child who was two and a half years old had been the most staggering, knocking him off balance and leaving him stumbling in the dark.

Hell Sam hadn't even realised that his brother had been in a relationship with someone when they had been longer, his brother tended to flirt with anything that moved but he had never taken it anywhere serious before. Sam wondered whether that had been down to this Tansy woman because Dean had never been short on offers.

He shook his head, lifting his arm and pushing the sleeve of his hoodie back so he could see his watch, a slight frown coming to his face as he realised that he was wasting much needed time by standing staring into the distance.

Sam breathed out nosily, running a hand through his hair. He was going to have to spend the next few hours in a car with his brother's wife and son, like that wasn't going to be awkward for any of them. He swore softly under his breath, turning on the spot and walking swiftly towards the door which would lead him back to his apartment.

If only he had answered just one of Dean's numerous calls then he could have been at Dean's wedding, standing at his side as his best man. The fact that Sam now knew that his father had stood in his place instead was a kick in the teeth. He wanted to scream at Dean for getting married without him there but he knew he didn't have a leg to stand on, not when it was his fault. It wasn't as though he could have expected Dean to continually put off his own wedding on the off chance that Sam would have picked up his mobile but it still didn't stop it hurting.

Then of course there was Dean's baby.

Sam wondered how it worked with him; did one of them stay behind to care for him while the other took on hunting jobs? Dean had been furious at the mere suggestion that he would bring his son on a hunt putting him at risk. He wondered for a moment what the kid looked like? Did he look like Dean or was it the mother he resembled. If he was two and a half then he would probably have been walking and perhaps talking, he would recognise people and interact with them, perhaps brightening up when he saw them. Did their father have a part in the kid's life? Was he recognised or had the constant hunts their Dad clearly still went on made him as big a stranger as Sam was.

God the entire thing was surreal. In fact everything which had happened that night was surreal, Sam kept expecting to wake up any minute and find out that the whole thing had been some crazy alcohol induced dream brought on by way too many tequilas.

Sam opened the front door quietly, slipping back into their quiet apartment, pushing the door closed behind it before he rested his back against it, taking a moment just to breathe before he stood straight and made his way to the bedroom. He felt exhausted, his hangover coming back with a bloody vengeance but he knew that he wasn't going to get anymore sleep that night. Not when so many thoughts were zooming around his head and not when he knew that Dean would be back soon to collect him.

He shook his head.

Why the hell had he actually agreed to do this? Why was he leaving two days before the biggest interview of his life to try and locate his father who was no doubt holed up somewhere surrounded by empty bottles of spirits, hung over and cranky and wanting to be left the hell alone. Sam should have been staying at home; looking over his notes and having Jessica test him, asking questions so he was fully prepared and ready for anything.

He knew the answer to the question already though. He had agreed because it had been Dean who had asked him and he couldn't let his big brother down again.

Sam could handle the search for their father easily enough, he could even handle the hunting side of things though he admitted that there was a chance that after four years he might be slightly rusty. What he wasn't sure about was whether he could deal with meeting his brother's family and being confronted with just how much Dean had moved on.

When Sam had allowed himself to think of Dean he had always pictured him clinging to their father in Sam's absence, following the older man around and doing nothing but hunting and fraud and possibly drinking and always waiting for Sam to reappear in his life.

That belief though was clearly wrong.

Dean hadn't clung to their father at all, if anything it seemed to Sam that his brother had only been waiting for Sam to leave the family home before he set about building his own life. A life which still included their father to a large degree if they exchanged daily telephone calls with each other. The very same father who hadn't rang to speak to Sam once since he left for Stanford. The unspoken message couldn't be clearer to Sam. Their father approved of Dean and what he had made of his life, he didn't approve of Sam.

The whole situation might have been amusing and worthy of soap opera status if it wasn't so damn tragic but as much as it pained him to admit it, Dean was right on this occasion. Apart from the month where he had rang daily, Dean hadn't bothered Sam or asked him for anything. Hell he didn't even knock Sam out for missing his wedding. The least Sam could do fro his brother was to go with him to Jericho to check the whole situation out. Dean had made enough sacrifices in the past for Sam and it was time that he paid him back for one of them. Besides there was no telling what Dean would get up to if Sam wasn't there to keep a close watch on him.

He pulled the small duffle bag out from underneath the bed and unzipped it staring down into the empty space with a mixture of dread and excitement. What would he need to bring with him for a two day trip? Clothes, his wallet, money, probably a bottle of water just in case Dean wanted to make the whole journey in one go without making stops.

Sam's eyes flickered around the room lingering on the closed suitcase he had stuffed at the top of the wardrobe. He walked over to it, grabbing it and dropped it onto the surface of Jessica's dresser. He glanced back over his shoulder towards the doorway making sure it was still clear before he unzipped it, pulling out the wickedly curved knife he kept there as a safety precaution. He breathed in deeply looking at it and trying to ignore how natural it felt to be holding such a dangerous weapon. Instead he walked towards the bed and slipped the knife into the duffle bag.

"Are you taking off Sam?" Jessica demanded entering the room and lingering by the doorway, one hand gripping the frame tightly as her eyes moved between the duffle bag and Sam's face with a disbelieving look on her own. Sam couldn't blame her reaction. "Sam is this about your brother's visit tonight? About what he told you about your father going missing? Has something else happened?" she asked him worriedly.

"Yeah" Sam answered with a shrug "You know just a little family drama to spice up the weekend that's all"

"Dean said he was on some sort of hunting trip, like game hunting or something?" Sam walked over to the drawers and opened it, pulling out a random selection of shirts and t-shirts aware of Jessica moving away from the door and lowering her self onto the bed.

"Yep just deer hunting up at the old cabin" he lied, walking back towards her and slipping the clothes into his bag. "Don't worry though. He's probably got Jim, Jack and Jose along with him keeping him company. I'm just going to go and help bring him back" he remarked absently.

"Your brother seemed pretty worried about him" she pointed out. Sam shrugged.

"Dean has always been a worrier" he responded.

"And what about the interview Sam? That's on Monday" she stated, staring up at him intently. Sam met her gaze and laughed.

"I'll make that interview" he promised her, picking up the bag and walking around the bed "This is only going to be for a couple of days. I'll be back annoying you before you know it"

"Sam please" Jessica said surging to her feet and following him. He stopped, dropping his bag on the bed waiting for her to speak. "Just stop a second. Are you sure you're okay?" Sam let out a small laugh at the question.

"I'm fine" he stated.

"It's just" she began, clearly choosing her words carefully. "I can't even make you talk about your family and when you do, you only speak about Dean and suddenly he shows up in the middle of the night and you're gone. It's not even morning yet and you're still packed ready to go and with Monday coming up which is kinda a massive deal-"

"Hey" Sam interrupted softly "Everything is going to be okay Jess. I'll be back in time I promise" she searched his eyes, nodding slowly before she reached out and catching his wrist with her hand, a slight frown coming to her face.

"What else did Dean tell you?" she asked "You're upset and I don't believe it's to do with your dad" Sam stared back at her for a moment before he sank down onto the bed, pulling her down with him. "Sam?"

Sam licked his lips and swallowed.

"Dean is married and a father" he said lowly "And I didn't know because he couldn't contact me to invite me to his own wedding. She and the baby are coming with us when we go tomorrow"

"Dean is married?" Jessica replied taking a deep breath "Well that's good new isn't it?" she asked hesitantly, continuing when Sam's head snapped up so he could stare at her. "You're always mentioning how you were afraid that Dean would end up alone but he obviously isn't if he already has a wife and kid. What is the kid's name?" she asked. Sam thought for a moment.

"James" he answered "Apparently he is two and a half"

"James Winchester goes nicely together, I bet he's lovely" Jessica said dreamily "And even better is the fact that he is young enough that you can insert your self into his life and be his Uncle Sam. Dean wouldn't object to it I'm sure. He'd probably be glad that you want to be a part of his son's life and as for his wife, well just give her a chance Sam. The pair of you might hit it off with each other, you never know"

Sam laughed; trust Jessica to be optimistic over the whole situation. It was one of the things he loved the most about her.

"We'll see Jess" he responded watching as Jessica smiled before she raised her eyebrows at him.

"When is your brother due here again?" she asked, Sam pulled a face glancing down at his watch.

"Not for another hour or so" he replied.

"Well then Sam Winchester" Jessica purred, placing her hand on his chest and pushing him back so he was laid out flat on the bed "Why don't we make the most of that hour " she suggested.

Sam grinned.

"Oh hell yes"

* * *

Author Note

**Next chapter will be up soon**

**Thanks for reading!**


	7. Chapter 7

Reunion

By

Ava Brett

Disclaimer

**Dean, Sam and John Winchester do not belong to me in any shape or form. I am merely using them for my own entertainment purpose.**

**Tansy and James Winchester ****Do**** belong to me so please don't use them without first asking permission from me.**

**Author Note**

**Oooooooooo it felt strange writing that disclaimer!**

**And yep here we are, the first time you the reader meet Tansy (and sort of James). I've known her for quite a few chapters now so its strange to look back over this and realise that it is the first time you hear her voice and experience the first glimpse of her personality and how the dynamic between husband and wife works with these two.**

**This is most definitely my favourite story which I write and when I'm not on one of my epic writing days (Like yesterday) then this is the story I am always working on, tweaking it, studying it, and editing it. It's the one which brings me the most joy in writing which was not something I expected when I took this challenge on.**

**It really means a lot to me that you guys have been willing to read it and give it a chance and not only that but you've reviewed it, or made it a favourite or decided it's worth following. I honestly hand over heart expecting no reviews and no one really to look at it. So thank you so much.**

**This is and always has been a story about Dean and Sam and the difference in their relationship if Dean was married with a child and that is the main plot line but I shall be interweaving other twists and plots in because I'm hoping to make this a series because I have plans for what Dean was doing when Sam and John were both away and trust me when I say he wasn't just hunting all the time. He was putting that impressive brain to good use being encouraged by his wife… because that's the key with Dean isn't it. All he's ever needed was encouragement from someone who he loved and who loved him back.**

**Anyway I think this Author note must come to an end before it turns into a mini essay.**

**I hope you enjoy the chapter**

Overall Summary

**A/U – When Sam left for Stanford it never occurred to him that life would go on without him, now his brother is back, needing his help in locating their father but he isn't alone. Sam need to figure out where he stands now and decide once and for all whether he is a Winchester or not.**

Chapter Summary

**Dean fills Tansy in on what happened with Sam…**

Overall Romance

**Dean Winchester / Tansy Winchester (OFC), Sam Winchester / Jessica Moore**

Chapter Romances

**Dean Winchester / Tansy Winchester (OFC)**

* * *

Chapter Seven

1st November 2005

04:50 AM

The Honey Bee Motel

Highway 53

Palo Alto

California

* * *

Mr and Mrs Winchester Point of View

* * *

Dean breathed a sigh of relief as he pulled the impala into the motel car park; if he was lucky then he might be able to grab at least a hour in bed before they had to be up, dressed and fed ready to go back to Sam's apartment and pick him up.

He cut the engine and exited the car, closing the driver's door quietly, the sound loud in the silence. He rested his hands against the cool metal of the roof, eyes darting about him as he searched the shadows for any threat which might have been lurking in there ready to jump some poor unsuspecting sod. There was nothing though and the silence surrounding him felt normal, he was simply alone. Clearly everyone else, both normal and supernatural, were elsewhere on this cold night. Probably in bed asleep if they had any common sense in their brains at all.

Dean ran a hand down his face envying them for a moment, god he could have done with more then an hours sleep especially when he had slept so badly the night before, plagued with nightmares and restless thoughts brought on by his father's message. Something was happening and it was killing Dean not to know what it was. How the hell was he meant to keep his family safe if he had no idea what exactly it was he was meant to be protecting them from?

The only thing Dean could think of was that it was the thing which killed his mother that was the only reason he could think of which would explain why his Dad would abandon a hunt half way through. He had never done that before, not even in the early days when things had been a lot rougher for them. If it was the yellow eye demon then what had brought it back now after twenty two years? Was it after them or was it something else? Perhaps it was the way the demon worked, only appearing after a certain amount of years.

The whole situation caused his head to spin.

He had to go to Jericho and he had to finish what his Dad started. Maybe there would be something there which would give Dean some sort of idea where his Dad had gone. There must have been something about Jericho, something he had seen or read or heard there, which had triggered this. If it was there then Dean would find it.

He shook his head, realising that he had been standing in the cold for five minutes, staring into the darkness with unseeing eyes making him the perfect prey is something happened to stumble across him. He locked the car door, patted the roof twice before he twisted on the spot, walking away from his baby towards room ten where they were staying the night.

Dean took the second room key out of his pocket and twirled it lightly in his hand, thankful that Tansy had enough sense to chuck it at him before he had driven off to speak to Sam. He inserted it into the door, slowly turning the handle when he heard the familiar clicking sound which indicated the room was now unlocked. He slipped through the small gap and closed it behind him, automatically locking it before he stepped over the salt time which Tansy had clearly drawn before she had gone to bed, leaving enough room for him to get into the room without disturbing it.

He smiled, eyes flickering to both windows to see that she had done the same with them, if he knew his wife then she would have done the window in the toilet as well. Tansy had always been methodical, something which had increased dramatically when James had been born, nothing got past her when it came to protecting their son from anything which threatened him.

"Hey you"

Dean glanced away from the window to look at the bed closest to the door, his smile growing at the sound of Tansy's sleepy voice. He should have known that she would have stayed awake waiting for him to come back to them.

"Hey yourself" he replied back, keeping his voice low. "You should be asleep you know" he pointed out ignoring the small dismissive sound she made as he stripped out of his clothes until he was in his boxers.

"Dean?" she said attracting his attention, before he could answer though an old t-shirt and pair of pyjamas bottoms were chucked at his head, hitting him square in the face. "As much as I like you with little to no clothing on when we're in bed together, its freezing tonight which means that you are gonna be freezing because you've been outside, which means you are wearing pyjamas tonight until you've warmed up." she remarked, not bothering to keep the amusement out of her voice as she spoke.

"I'll remind you of that next time you're trying to rip them off of me" he answered, shaking his head as he headed into the bathroom. It didn't take long to change into them or brush his teeth. He could feel the need for sleep and the bed calling him but he ignored it, creeping instead to the bed nearest to the bathroom door and looking down at his sleeping son, his heart swelling in his chest as he reached down and gently ran his hand over his son's dark curls.

The small boy stirred in his sleep, making a small snuffling sound before he settled back down with a soft sigh, his small arms tightened around the ratty old teddy bear which went everywhere with him. Smiling Dean stood watching him, allowing the sight to sooth away any residual anger he had from his encounter with Sam.

"Come to bed Dean" Tansy whispered "You need to sleep."

Dean nodded his agreement reluctantly turning away from James and moving silently around the other bed, slipping into the side nearest to the door so he would be the first one anyone would encounter if they were stupid enough to try something.

A small sound of pleasure escaped his mouth as his muscles relaxed for the first time before he reached out, wrapping his arm around Tansy's waist and rolling her over to him, snuggling his head into the crook of her shoulder and sighing happily at the familiar vanilla scent which always seemed to surround her.

"Did Jago go down ok?" he asked after a small silence, he felt Tansy shrug beneath his cheek.

"He was tired so he grumbled a bit but he didn't put up much of a fight, he kept asking for you though; I don't think he understood why you were gone so I read him two stories instead of the usual one."

"I'll read to him tomorrow" he remarked tiredly.

"How did it go with your brother then?" she asked quietly "Is Sam coming with us to Jericho or is he staying here?"

"He's decided to grace us with his presence" Dean remarked "It took some time to convince him but he eventually agreed though he needs to be back home on Monday for a law school interview. I'm guessing he's hoping to remain here at Stanford or something" Tansy made a noise of interest.

"Well considering what we do, a lawyer in the family might be helpful, at least we'd always have someone who would represent us" she pointed out in amusement. "Maybe he could represent all the Hunters, he'd never be out of business and he'd make a killing"

"Yeah feel free to mention that to him when you see him" Dean answered with a grin. "It be nice for you to experience his bitch face so you know what to expect in the future."

"I can barely contain my excitement Dean" she replied dryly.

"I told him about you and Jago" Dean went on to say, dropping a light kiss against her bare skin, his arm tightening around her. "I kinda figured it was the best time to do it when he left me a gap which was wide open to bring it up. He would only have thrown a hissy fit if I had waited to tell him. Beside its better this way, he can begin to wrap his head around things. All he needs is time."

"Sounds like it makes sense" she responded. Dean felt her move her head so she was facing him, he could see the gleam of her eyes in the faint light from the closed curtains. "So how exactly did Sam take the news that you were married with a son of your own?"

"He took it exactly like I thought he would" Dean confessed with a sigh. "It's hard to read him though Tans, sometimes he's so freakily logical its like having a Vulcan for a baby brother and other times he's so flipping emotional that its just exhausting to watch" he smiled when she snorted, trying to keep her laughter down so she didn't wake James up.

"Well it's gonna be interesting to finally meet him. God knows I've heard enough about him from you and John. It feels like I know everything there is to know about him already" she remarked before she leaned across and brushed a kiss across Dean's mouth. "You need to rest" she remarked "You're only going to get about thirty minutes sleep as it is. I'll kick you out of bed when its time for us to go, you can always eat your breakfast in the impala for once if it means extra time in bed."

Dean mumbled something against her skin, turning his face and pressing it further into the crook of her shoulder before his breath evened out on a sigh and sleep claimed him.

Tansy shifted, turning her head so she could stare up at the ceiling with wide staring eyes as she thought about her brother in law. If she was being completely honest with herself she had been hoping that Sam would have said no to coming. She had heard so much about it, some good, some bad but it had all combined leaving her with a negative impression of him. She was sure that wasn't what Dean had intended when he had told her stories about Sam, a warm affectionate smile on his face making it clear that he loved his brother but it was what happened.

As far as she could see Dean had given everything up for Sam; his childhood, his hopes for a life of his own and focused all his attention on Sam and on raising him right and never once had Dean indicated that Sam had thanked him for his sacrifice. Instead he repaid Dean by ignoring him, cutting the older man from his life and refusing to have anything to do with him for reasons she couldn't even fathom. Why would someone willingly turn away from someone like Dean? Her mind couldn't comprehend it.

Tansy's eyes narrowed as she remembered the look on Dean's face when Sam had ignored yet another call from him. It was all she could do to keep lying there in Dean's embrace and not storm over to her brother in law's apartment and introduce her fist to Sam's face. God knew he deserved it for all he had put her husband through the past four years.

She had been the one who had to put Dean back together when he had sat in despair wondering what he had done for Sam to treat him that way and it was something that she wasn't going to forgive or forget any time soon.

Sam might be back in Dean's life and he might be coming with them but Tansy was going to make sure the younger man didn't hurt Dean again; she didn't care what she had to do to accomplish it.

It would be worth it.

* * *

Author Note

**Next chapter should be up on Sunday…**

**Thanks for reading **


	8. Chapter 8

Reunion

By

Ava Brett

Disclaimer

**Sam Winchester, Dean Winchester and Jessica Moore do not belong to me in any shape or form. I am merely using them for my own entertainment purposes.**

**Tansy and James Winchester do however belong to me so please do not use them without permission.**

Author Note

**This chapter has been surprisingly fun to write. I wanted a chapter where you the reader could have a glimpse at how it could have been if things had been different. How the two couple interacted with each other and how it could have grown into something stronger and healthier though of course there was never any hope of that really.**

**The response to Tansy has been great, I'm so glad you like her! She's a great character to write because she's so much fun, something which will show in later chapters as well and she really loves her husband which is a good thing… if you're looking for lots of Dean angst when it comes to his love life then this might not be the story for you because shockingly enough Dean is happy with her.**

**I know amazing isn't it but its true!**

**Anyway I hope you enjoy the chapter.**

Summary

**A/U – When Sam left for Stanford it never occurred to him that life would go on without him, now his brother is back, needing his help in locating their father but he isn't alone. Sam need to figure out where he stands now and decide once and for all whether he is a Winchester or not.**

Chapter Summary

**The couples meet for the first time face to face…**

Overall Romance

**Dean Winchester / Tansy Winchester (OFC), Sam Winchester / Jessica Moore**

Chapter Romances

**Dean Winchester / Tansy Winchester (OFC), Sam Winchester / Jessica Moore**

* * *

Chapter Eight

**1****st**** November 2006**

**06:00**

**Sam Winchester and Jessica Moore's rented apartment**

**25****th**** Broadway Avenue**

**Palo Alto**

**California**

* * *

Sam Winchester Point of View

* * *

Sam was sitting on a freezing cold stone step outside his apartment building when he heard the familiar purr of the impala coming down the road. He glanced down at his watch unsurprised to see that it was six o clock on the dot. Clearly the severe regime their father had them complete when he was around was still influencing his brother. Sam wondered for a moment whether Dean had ever been late for anything in his life though he quickly pushed the thought away. He was grateful for his brother's time keeping ability; at least it meant they would hit the road quicker which would mean he could return home to Jessica quicker.

He pushed himself to his feet, snagging his backpack from the ground and putting it on one shoulder as he climbed down the stairs. He watched the gleaming black car swing into the car park before his attention was caught by the sound of the door opening behind him; he glanced behind him, a smile coming to his feet when Jessica slipped out pulling the door to behind her. She looked wide awake dressed casually in a pair of old work jeans which were splattered with paint and an oversized hoodie which Sam was pretty sure belonged to him. She had tied her hair back which probably meant that she was planning on a painting day making the most of him being gone since he tended to complain about the smell of the paints she used on the canvas.

"You're gonna be careful right?" she demanded, stepping up behind him and wrapping her arms around his waist, tilting her head so she could peer into his face. "Dean seems the sort who convinces people to do stupid things for his own entertainment. If he suggest something stupid like jumping off a cliff then just say no" she joked. Sam laughed, turning so he could drop a kiss on her head.

"Two minutes in the room with the guy and you already know him I see" he responded. "Don't worry though, I'm used to dealing with Dean and I know how to handle him. Besides I'm always careful, I'm offended by the fact you think I'm not" he said pretending to be insulted as he placed a hand over his heart, his pitiful look breaking into a smile at the look of sheer belief she gave him.

"Yeah whatever you say Sam" she replied patting his arm even as she shook her head at him.

"Morning Sammy boy, morning Jess" Dean called out as he stepped out of the car. He quietly closed the door behind him, stuffing his hands into his jacket before he walked over to them a wide grin on his face. He looked tired in the early morning light but his eyes looked alert, flickering around him carefully before they focused on the pair of them, a cheeky glint coming to them which automatically placed Sam on alert. He had seen that look more times then he could remember. "Don't tell me that's all you're bringing with you Sam" Dean stated coming to a stop in front of them. He took a hand out of his pocket so he could jab it at Sam's bag.

Sam glanced down at it with a raised eyebrow before he looked back at Dean with a curious look. If anything he had thought he had brought too much with him for the trip. He shot Jessica a quick stare but his girlfriend merely looked amused, clearly enjoying witnessing the interaction between the pair of them.

"We're only going for two days Dean" Sam pointed out cautiously; sure he was walking into a trap which he couldn't see.

"I guess so. I just thought you'd need a bigger bag to fit all your hair products in" Dean joked with a wide grin. He glanced at the sky thoughtfully before looking back down at Sam. "We'll shove it in the trunk with the other bags so if there's anything you actually want for the trip you should probably dig it out and bring it in the car with you because I'm not planning on making many stops unless we have to. The sooner we get there the sooner we get back right?" he stated.

"Right" Sam answered, unzipping his bag and fishing out his water.

Dean turned his attention away from him instead looking towards Jessica.

"Sorry about randomly turning up out of the blue last night Jess. I would have called but-"his words trailed off as he shrugged, his look suddenly turned cheeky again. "Clearly it didn't affect your beauty sleep though because you're looking pretty damn stunning considering its stupid o clock in the morning" he teased. Sam glanced up taking in Dean's thoughtful eyes as he clearly waited for Jessica to respond to him.

He zipped his bag back up turning his attention to his girlfriend to see how she would take Dean's comment. Sam had found that anytime anyone other then him self attempted to Jessica she would smile sweetly at them before proceeding to rip them a new one, all the while keeping her voice sugary. It was rather impressive to watch. Instead of glaring at Dean though she merely watched him, searching his attentive eyes with a searching look which ended in her suddenly smiling at him.

The sight of that smile unnerved Sam, the only time he ever saw that smile was when Jessica had figured out some sort of complex puzzle which had been annoying her.

"Why thank you, gotta tell you that you aren't exactly looking shabby yourself Dean" she flirted lightly back causing Sam's mouth to fall open in surprise. "I mean considering that you probably slept less then me last night. Your wife is a lucky lady"

Dean stared at her for a moment before his teasing smile melted into a genuine smile as he shrugged.

"Make sure you tell her that, sometimes I think she needs to be reminded" he joked, his voice warm with affection for his wife.

The sound of a second car door attracted Sam's attention and he looked over his brother's shoulder in time to see a young woman climb out of the passenger seat, she closed the door, stepping to the back of the car and peering through the glass for a moment before she turned and began walking to them.

Sam watched carefully as he came face to face with his brother's wife for the first time.

She was a small woman perhaps five foot three, five foot four if he was being generous. He couldn't see her figure beneath her warm looking navy blue duffle coat but he could see that she was very pretty. She had a navy blue beret hat on her head but he could see strands of curly black hair framing her face. She was pale and had large dark blue eyes surrounded by long lashes. The fact that she was pretty didn't surprise Sam, not when he had grown up seeing Dean's preference when it came to women. She was dressed casually though in jeans and navy blue converse, the colour matching her coat.

"He's still asleep" she announced, her voice was surprisingly soothing with a pleasant drawl to it pointing to the fact that she had probably originally been born and raised in the New Orleans area. She must have moved elsewhere if her Dad had hunted with theirs because Sam could only remember going to that area once in his youth and he remembered that his Dad had definitely hunted alone that time because he had come home injured and Dean had had to sow his arm up for him.

"It won't last" Dean said with a sigh. "He always seems to know the minute we leave the car, it doesn't matter how deeply he's asleep he just knows." Tansy shrugged her shoulders coming to a stop by Dean and wrapping her arm around her waist in a casual possessive hold, her attention fixed on both Sam and Jessica with a probing look. Dean rolled his eyes at her lack of response, wrapping his own arm around her shoulder and pulling her closer to him as he looked at Sam.

"Sam, Jessica this is my wife Tansy. Tansy this is my younger brother Sam and his girlfriend Jessica, this is where they live" he said indicating the building.

"Hello Jessica" Tansy said with a polite smile before she looked towards Sam, her eyes becoming sharp as they moved over his face. "And Sam, it's nice to finally meet you in the flesh. I've heard a lot about you from Dean and John."

"All good stuff I hope" Sam responded watching as her smile became more fixed as her eyes went chillier. He blinked in surprise when she remained silently merely shrugging at him before she buried her head against Dean's side, reaching up and grabbing his hand and interlocking their fingers together.

"It's nice to meet you as well Tansy and please call me Jess, only my parents call me Jessica and its normally because I've messed up somehow" Jessica remarked brightly, letting go of Sam and joining him at his side.

"Which is probably why they call her Jessica all the time" Sam teased lightly trying to ignore how uneasy and awkward he felt.

"So I don't know whether Dean's told you Tansy but I'm determined that the four of us go out and have dinner together or perhaps lunch if its easier for you with you son when you all get back from your trip. It be nice to actually get to know you both properly and God knows when the next time you come and visit will be" Jessica remarked ignoring Sam's comment.

Sam rolled his eyes, shaking his head as he turned his attention to Dean and Tansy who were sharing a quick look with each other. Some sort of silent conversation had clearly passed between them if the sudden smiles which came to their faces were any indication to go by. They both turned to Jessica who was waiting impatiently for their answer, clearly ready to ply them with reasons why it was a good idea if they dared refused her offer.

"That doesn't sound like a bad idea" Tansy remarked with a nod. "Dean did mention something about it earlier, but he was half asleep with his head mashed into the pillow so it was hard to tell. We were going to leave on Monday evening to get home but we could always stick around until the Wednesday or something if need be. What about the Monday evening? We could go about five in the evening that way we can hear how Sam's interview went otherwise Dean is only going to drive me crazy by worrying about it." she suggested turning away from Jessica to flash Dean a warm loving smirk which he returned.

"We can pick the place since we know the area and where the best places to eat are." Sam said getting involved in the conversation. The last thing he wanted was to make a bad impression. Of course staring at Dean like he had grown an extra head wasn't helping matters but he couldn't help it. Sam had spent his whole life being told by Dean that he did not do any sort of chick moment with anyone and yet all Sam had experienced since Tansy had exited the car was a big chick flick between the two. He was torn between tormenting his older brother about it as was his god given right as a younger brother or throwing holy water over him to make sure that Dean was actually Dean and not an imposter.

"Great" Jessica said clapping her hands together "I know the-"

A muffled demanded cry came from the back of the car, interrupting Jessica and attracting their attention.

"See I told you" Dean said. "He always knows, the minute we leave and he roars the place down." He shook his head, taking his arm from Tansy's shoulder and turning away from them, jogging back to the impala. He went to the door which Tansy had peered through and leaned in, clearly fiddling around with something. Sam watched his arm wrapping around Jessica's shoulder as a sudden flash of nervousness went through him. He watched as Dean reappeared from the interior of the car with a small boy carefully held in his arms. His brother adjusted the child so he was comfortable before he closed the door with his hip and headed back to them.

A wide grin came to Dean's face when the boy wrapped his small arms around his neck and dropped his head to Dean's shoulder resting it there. He came to a stop in front of them and indicated the boy with a proud look on his face.

"Sam and Jess I'd like you to meet our son James. Jago this is your Uncle Sammy and Auntie Jess. Say hello to them, they've been really excited to meet you"

"Hi" James said shyly looking up at them. Sam watched him carefully taking in the curly black hair and Dark blue eyes which clearly belong to Tansy. The features were Dean's though. James shared the same basic looks as his father right down to the straight nose covered with freckles and the same smiling mouth.

"Hi James" Sam said a smile coming to his face as he stared at James. The boy blinked at his curiously, tilting his head before he looked away, burying his head into Dean's neck with a sudden show of shyness. Dean turned his head dropping a kiss on James's head as he absently rubbed his hand up and down James's back.

"Sorry about that, he's normally a chatterbox but he's tired and he does tend to get a bit shy around strangers" Tansy remarked reaching out and running her hand over her son's head with a fond look before she pushed back Dean's sleeve and glanced at his watch.

Sam had yet to take his eyes from the small boy in his brother's arm. He couldn't quite believe that his brother had helped make the small scarp of humanity. James was so small in Sam's eyes though he was sure he was a normal sized two years old. He found himself hating the fact that James didn't know him, he wanted to see the small face light up the same way it did every time James tilted his head back to look at Dean or to see his mother.

"We should head off now Dean" Tansy said attracting Sam's attention away from James. Dean glanced at his watch and nodded his head.

"Yep" he remarked with a sigh. "I'm not leaving this town without a coffee though" he remarked. Tansy rolled her eyes making sure that Dean caught her doing it.

"Of course, I wouldn't dream of depriving you of your second coffee fix of the morning Dean" she remarked dryly. "I know how grumpy you get without it"

"I don't get grumpy, just well… okay grumpy but what can you expect when it's so early?" he asked causing her to grin at him.

"Hey I'm not complaining, you aren't the only one who needs coffee, I would murder for a large caramel latte right about now with an extra shot of caramel."

"That's because you're obsessed with caramel" Dean pointed out.

"Yep and you're obsessed with coffee, where are you going with this?" she asked curiously, Dean looked thoughtful for a moment before he shook his head.

"No where" he responded "except now I really want coffee"

"Me too" Tansy replied with a sigh before she glanced at Sam and Jessica who were watching the conversation with a look of amusement plastered across their faces. "It's gonna take us about five hours to get there if we don't stop so if we leave now then we'll get there about twelve odd"

"Well done you can count" Dean teased, laughing when Tansy pushed him; she reached up and readjusted her beret which the effort had almost dislodged from her head.

"Jess let me give you mine and Dean's mobile numbers. You should probably have them in case there's some sort of emergency or something" she fished into her bag and pulled our a notepad and pen, opening it she went through it until she found a clean page and quickly scribbled the names and numbers down before ripping the page out and handing it over to the younger girl with a smile.

"Feel free to call us anytime" Dean remarked "I mean if you want ammunition on Sam for example then I can supply you with stuff that you can use for years"

"Don't encourage her Dean" Sam remarked "She's bad enough with fishing for stories as it is" Jessica pretended to look offended.

"What's so wrong in wanting to know all the embarrassing secrets from your childhood" she asked "you know all of mine, I know my mum showed you the baby pictures when we last went round, don't even bother trying to deny it either because Mark told me all about it"

Sam grinned.

"Well your brother should have kept quiet" he remarked before he ruffled her hair up. "You were adorable with your strange ass hair when you were younger" he said, kissing her temple.

"Revenge will be mine Sam, I'm sure Dean will help me"

"Help you to embarrass my brother? Where do I start" Dean asked with a laugh that grew when Sam flicked him the finger. "Now, now Sammy not in front of James" he remarked.

"Thanks for the numbers anyway" Jessica said, folding the paper up and shoving it into her back pocket. "I'll text you with details about Monday, where we're going to eat and stuff. Five should be good for us right Sam?" she asked turning to look at him.

"Guess so" he responded "It be a good way to unwind after the interview and besides we wouldn't want Dean to worry now would we?" he asked grinning when Dean covered James's eyes with his hand flicking him the V sign with his other hand.

For a moment Sam took the moment to look around him wondering whether this would be what it was like now between him and Dean. Both of them having their own separate lives and meeting up about once a month, Dean with his family swinging by anytime they were near to meet for food and drink. They could re-bond, producing a healthier relationship between the two of them.

The more Sam thought about the idea, the more he liked it

Dean turned to Tansy and spoke, a curious tone to his voice.

"You gonna go in the back Tans or are you calling shotgun?" Tansy looked at Sam carefully, the look assessing. Sam met the look head on; she didn't say anything to him instead turning to look at James who was snuggled against Dean, his eyes half open with a small sleepy smile on his face looking as though there was no where he could rather be.

"I think it's gonna be better if I get in the back with Jago, he doesn't know Sam and the last thing we want is a whole trip with him screaming in the back. When he's more used to Sam then it will be different"

Sam noticed that Dean looked displeased by her answer and found himself surprised and rather hurt by his brother's response. Clearly Dean had wanted Tansy riding up front with him. In the past it had always been Sam instead.

"In that case it looks like you're gonna be up from with me Sam" Dean remarked, turning to Sam with a grin, Sam searched his eyes before he found himself relaxing at the affection he saw there. Perhaps he was reading into the situation too much. Sitting in the front with Dean would be exactly like old times.

"I know you've got to go and all" Jessica said suddenly looking at Tansy and Dean "But would you mind if I held James just once?" she asked. Dean nodded instantly, a wide grin coming to his face.

"I suppose we can manage that" he teased holding James out to Jessica who took him eagerly. Sam watched as James leaned away from her for a moment, fixing her with a puzzled look before he glanced over his shoulder at his parents who both gave him encouraging smiles. James turned his attention back to Jessica, a small smile coming to his face when Jessica began bouncing him up and down on the spot, the smile grew making one come to Sam's face. It appeared that James had inherited Dean's grin as well.

Jessica hugged the small boy to her, burying her nose into his dark curls before she sighed and held him back to Tansy with an unwilling look.

"He's so gorgeous" she remarked, reaching down and intertwining her fingers with Sam's "And he's so well behaved isn't he?"

Dean snorted at her comment, shaking her head.

"Yeah just you wait until you've seen him when he's overtired or hungry or thirsty" he confided "They you'll see that the little man changes into a little monster instead, don't you Jago" Dean said to his son, a gleam coming to his eyes as he reached out and began tickling James's sides. Sam couldn't help but grin at the sound of his Nephew's excited laughter as he tried to wriggle away from Dean's relentless fingers. Sam could remember Dean doing the exact same thing to him when he was younger.

"No Daddy no" James called out breathlessly, slumping against Tansy's shoulder; Tansy shook her head with a sigh.

"You see what I have to put up with? Is it the same with Sam or is this just a Dean thing?" she remarked to Jessica, a smile hovering around her mouth. She laughed when Dean suddenly wrapped his arm around her and dropped a quick kiss on her lips.

"You love it" he remarked confidently with a wink at her. "Don't even try to pretend otherwise, we both know it was my sense of fun which attracted you in the first place." Tansy seemed to consider his words carefully.

"Was it? And here I was thinking that it was your gorgeous green eyes that did it"

"Well that as well, oh and lets not forget my hot body and cute smile while we're at it" Dean agreed. Sam shook his head; this was definitely more like the Dean he remembered from his youth. Tansy turned back to Jessica.

"So it was lovely to meet you Jess, text me with the details on Monday. You know the pair of you should come and stay with us the next time you're on a school break" she suggested "We've plenty of room in the house and it be nice"

"Where exactly do you both live? Sam's never said before" Jessica asked curiously.

"That would be because Sammy boy here doesn't know where we live" Dean remarked lightly "We got a house in Carmel, Indiana so its only about two day driving from here, probably three if you drive as slowly as Tansy does" he remarked, grinning when Tansy hit his arm.

"I'm not a slow driver" she defended "You just drive like a maniac"

"I can vouch for that" Sam remarked.

"Hey" Dean remarked pointing his finger at him. "Remember whose side you're supposed to be on here" Sam raised an eyebrow.

"I'll try and remember that" he remarked before his face turned serious. "Just two days, who knew you were so close" Dean glanced at him, opening his mouth to speak before he closed it and looked away towards Tansy.

"Okay at the risk of sounding like a broken record we've seriously got to go. Jess enjoy your weekend" she smiled at the younger woman before turning and heading back to the back of the car so she could put James in his seat ready for the upcoming journey.

Dean held his hand out in front of him.

"Pass me you bag Sammy; I'll throw it in the truck while you say your goodbyes. Jess it's been a pleasure to meet such a gorgeous girl, clearly us Winchesters know how to pick them. I'll see you Monday and don't worry I'll make sure Sam gets back to you safe and sound" Jess nodded.

"If you don't I'll kick your ass" she promised causing him to laugh as he accepted the bag from Sam.

"Beautiful and witty? I approve Sam you can keep this one" he remarked with a wink at her before he turned and headed towards the car leaving the two of them behind.

"I really like them" Jessica remarked brightly before she turned and punched Sam lightly in the arm. "I can't believe you kept them away for so long you idiot. You're not doing that again. We are so gonna take Tansy up on her offer to go and visit them ok?"

"Yes Ma'am" Sam answered causing her to laugh even as she shook her head at him. She bit down on her lower lip, her expression becoming serious as she searched his eyes. Sam watched as she looked away from him and towards the car. He followed her gaze in time to see Dean get into the driving seat, twisting in it so he was facing away from them clearly saying something to his wife or his son.

"Are you sure you want to do this Sam? It's not too late for you to back out of going if you wanted to or I could always run upstairs and quickly pack a bag and go with you if you want? I wouldn't mind"

For a moment Sam seriously considered her offer, it would be nice to have her support but at the same time he still didn't want her to find out about that side of his life. If she came with them then she would be completely exposed to it and what he did. At least if she stayed behind here then he knew she would be safe from harm.

"I appreciate the offer Jess but I'll be ok. It's only for two day and you never know it might to me some good spending time with Dean and getting to know Tansy and James better" Jessica nodded her head, looking pleased by his answer as she reached up and pulled his head down so she could kiss him on the mouth.

"Just make sure you text or call me Sam, if I don't hear from you at least once every two hours then I'll start to worry and then I'll be forced to bombard your brother's for stories about you and I'm sure you don't want that" she threatened before she gave him another kiss and pushed him in the direction of the car. "Go. The sooner you leave, the sooner you get back" she remarked.

"I'll see you Monday Jess, Love you"

"I love you too Sam, now get lost. Try and fun with your brother and remember to be nice" she warned him making a shooing movement at him with her hands.

Sam rolled his eyes at her as he walked to the car and opened the passenger door, sliding in. He glanced around him, breathing in the familiar scent of Dean's alpine air freshener, a warm feeling growing in his chest as he realised that he had missed being in this car with his brother.

"Ready to hit the road then Sammy boy?" Dean asked from next to him, turning so he could look at Sam's expression. Sam met his eye briefly before turning to look back at Jessica who was leaning against the brick wall waving at them with a wide smile on her face.

"I'm ready"

* * *

Author Note

**So there's a small carefree moment for you since they are now getting into hunting mode. I do like being to slip these small scenes in! Hopefully you like them to!**

**There should finger crossed be another update tomorrow… aren't you lucky!**

**Thanks for reading!**


	9. Chapter 9

Reunion

By

Ava Brett

Disclaimer

**Sam and Dean Winchester do not belong to me in any shape or form. They belong to the creator as do some of the dialogue used in the below chapter**

**Tansy and James Winchester do however belong to me so please don't use them without first asking permission from me.**

Author Note

**So here is the next chapter as promised.**

**It makes me feel brilliant to know that so many of you don't want Jess to die now because you find yourselves liking what I've done with her character. That's like the ultimate compliment especially when it came to Jess because I always felt she was so 2D in the series, I would watch that first episode and find myself wondering why Sam was actually with her, it made no sense to me so I expanded her. I didn't actually expect anyone to like what I did to her so it's a relief you all do.**

**It's amazing as well that you all seem to like Tansy and James as well. **

**I know a lot of people are against OC and I've been the same it the past. Hell if this wasn't a challenge then I wouldn't have even started this story but I did and I soon grew to love the pair of them so it's nice that you guys do as well and have been willing to give Tansy and James a try. I've tried to make Tansy realistic in the way I wanted her to be a good match for Dean and what he needed but still be her own person. She's not perfect by any stretch of the imagination and she messes up like everyone else but yep… she loves Dean, what more could anyone ask.**

**Sam is acting like a douche now but he will improve. I'm not anti Sam in any way, it just seems to me that when something goes wrong he tends to blame others for his mistakes and decisions and deflects with bitchiness sometimes… not that Dean is a saint or anything but yep, this is kinda how I think Sam would react in this situation.**

**I don't think there's much more to say accept I had to put some protective Dean in and that I am a complete and utter sucker for Daddy Dean!**

Overall Summary

**A/U – When Sam left for Stanford it never occurred to him that life would go on without him, now his brother is back, needing his help in locating their father but he isn't alone. Sam need to figure out where he stands now and decide once and for all whether he is a Winchester or not.**

Chapter Summary

**Sam and Dean have a talk at the gas station…**

Overall Romance

**Dean Winchester / Tansy Winchester (OFC), Sam Winchester / Jessica Moore**

Chapter Romances

**Dean Winchester / Tansy Winchester (OFC)**

* * *

Chapter nine

**1****st**** November 2005**

**09.33 AM**

**Summers Gas station**

**Highway SR19**

**California**

* * *

Dean Winchester's point of view

* * *

"Either of you have any objections if I pull over at the next gas station for a bit?" Dean asked, taking his hand off of the steering wheel and rubbing at his tired, dry eyes.

"You need a break?" Sam asked, turning away from the window so he could look at Dean's face, a look of concern growing in his eyes. Dean had missed seeing that look from Sam directed at him. He nodded his head, dropping his hand back to the steering wheel surprised that Sam had spoken.

His brother had fallen silent within minutes of leaving Jess and their apartment behind him. Taking the time to either sleep, stare out at the passing scenery or to read Dean's case file from cover to cover all the while shooting small impressed looks at Dean as though he couldn't believe what he was reading. Dean wasn't sure whether he should be proud of insulted by it.

He had hoped that they might all talk and catch up a bit on what had been happening in their lives since they had last seen each other but Sam was clearly in no sharing mood at the moment so instead the journey had passed in near silence. It didn't help that his wife and brother hadn't hit it off straight away. The pair of them had barely spoken a word to each other instead focusing their comments to Dean when they had something to share. God only knew why though, it wasn't as though they could have developed an actual dislike towards each other in such a short space of time.

"I need another hit of coffee and something sugary to eat like a chocolate bar or maybe some donuts if they have them, you know the good kind that are full of jam" Dean remarked in answer to Sam's question. "Driving for hours on end when you've barely slept a wink isn't exactly a good time Sam" he sighed rolling his shoulders trying to ease the tension in them. He kept his eyes on the road, moving them to the side so he could spot the first place to stop.

"A stop sounds a pretty good idea to me Dean" Tansy said from the backseat. "Jago is beginning to get cranky so I think its time he had a nappy change and a chance to stretch his legs. Hopefully he will tire himself out enough that he'll go to sleep for most of the journey. He didn't get to sleep until later then normal last night."

Dean nodded his head, glancing at the back seat of the car via his mirrors, a small smile coming to his face when he caught the grumpy pout on his son's face.

"He's learnt that look from you" Dean teased, grinning when she lightly smacked him on the back of the head.

"You're lucky I'm not a cruel woman or I'd make you change his nappy for that comment" she threatened, grinning when Dean shuddered at the though. Dean liked to think he was a brave man but some of the things his son had produced in his nappy would have caused a much braver man to buckle.

"No I'm ok here thanks" he answered "Have we got enough food for him Tans? I'm guessing he's had his mid morning snack right?" risking a quick glance at them both over his shoulder before he looked back towards the road.

"He demolished it so quickly that he almost took my hand off with it. I think it's safe to say he takes after you when it comes to food Dean" she teased causing him to laugh.

"Well he is my boy after all" he remarked aware of Sam watching him with a curious look. Dean ignored him making a sound of satisfaction instead when he saw a garage coming up on the side of the road. "This looks good enough for me" he commented, hitting his indicator and pulling off the highway allowing the other cars to pass him. He pulled up by the gasp pump and killed the engine, glancing out of his window at the old wooden structure with a raised eyebrow.

"Trust you to find the one place that time forgot" Tansy remarked in amusement. "I'm surprised they even know what a car looks like"

Dean grinned looking at the shop. It certainly looked ancient as though it was about the crumble any moment. Still as long as they did coffee then Dean was willing to over look the way it looked.

He twisted round in his seat, looking back at his wife and child, his grin growing when he saw the excited smile that came to James's face when he noticed his father looking at him. The small boy reached out for him, chubby little fingers clutching at the air. Dean reached back and grasped the small dimpled hand lightly, shaking it up and down before letting it go and turning back to the front of the car.

"This is the last stop I'm making" he announced "So now might be the time to get out and stretch" he glanced towards Sam who simply shrugged at him.

"Well we're definitely getting out aren't we Jago" she said, Dean grinned when James responded.

"Yes Mummy!"

"Saying that though" Tansy went on, looking away from James to peer at the building. "Maybe I should see whether the toilets here are actually suitable for human use. If we aren't back in five minutes it could mean the fumes have gotten to us in which case we'll be expecting you to come and rescue us Dean right Jago?"

"Daddy to the rescue Mummy" the small boy said excited.

"Always little man" Dean responded.

"I'm good here Dean" Sam said as Tansy flung open her door and climbed out. "If you could get me a coffee though then that would be awesome. I could use the pick me up" Dean nodded turning and staring carefully at Sam's pale face, taking in the bags under his eyes and the general look of tiredness he had before he suddenly grinned.

"Well, well, well Sammy boy if I didn't know better I'd say you were suffering from the mother of all hangovers. Heavy night before I arrived?" he teased. Sam flashed him his bitch face.

"Just for that you're paying for my coffee and I'll be nicking half your donuts if you get them."

"You better be quick then Sammy. Me and Tansy take no prisoners when it comes to food"

"Why doesn't that surprise me?" Sam asked with a slight smile before he bent over slightly and reached under his seat, groping around until he found the cardboard box filled with Dean's taped which he kept under the seat out of the way.

Dean shook his head, glancing at the petrol gauge before he undid his seatbelt, pushing the door open and climbing out into the fresh air with a sigh of relief. He lifted his arms to the sky, interlocking his fingers together as he stretched his cramped muscles, giving another sigh of relief when he heard his back give a large satisfying crunch.

He glanced round when he heard Sam open his door wondering whether his brother had changed his mind but instead Sam merely shoved his stupidly long legs out of the car. Dean bent down glancing through the window and rolling his eyes when he saw that Sam was still rummaging through the box on his lap.

"He'll regret that" Dean said quietly to himself.

"You know Dean, talking to yourself is the first sign of madness" Tansy said softly, brushing her hand across his back "Take Jago please" he twisted his head meeting her eyes as he reached out automatically to take James away from Tansy.

"Must be a result of being married to you" he teased, softening the words with a quick kiss before he buried his nose in his son's soft black hair and sniffed, the smell of mint and baby shampoo soothing him. He moved his head round, resting his cheek against the top of James's head as he watched Tansy duck into the driver's seat and take the keys from the ignition. She smiled at him as she went to the back of the car and unlocked the trunk, fishing out the dark blue baby bag which they kept with them at all times. James was nearly potty trained but nether Dean nor Tansy wanted to risk him wetting himself on a long car journey so they tended to keep him in nappies for them.

"Anything you want from inside Tans? Sam's already demanded a coffee" Dean asked as she adjusted the strap of the bag before putting it over her shoulder.

"I've doubt they've got flavoured coffee here so just get me some water and some mints please Dean. I finished my last packet of them ten minutes ago."

Dean nodded his head, dropping a kiss on James's head before he passed him back over to his mother. They shared a quick smile before Dean looked away, turning his attention to filling his second baby up with petrol while Tansy lowered James to the floor and swiftly walked after him as the small boy ran away as fast as his little legs could carry him, shrieking with laughter as he went.

Dean smiled to himself at the sound glancing up in time to see the pair of them disappear around the side of the shop.

He tapped the petrol pump lightly against the side before he pulled it out, placing it back on the stand it had been. It only came to twenty dollars which was better then he had expected it to be. As much as Dean loved and worshipped his car she didn't half guzzle through petrol like there was no tomorrow.

Dean entered the small store looking around him with watchful eyes as he scoped the place out for anything which might have been harmful for his family. It wouldn't have been the first time he had been attacked by Demons while paying for petrol and with the way his luck tended to go he highly doubted whether it would be the last time either.

The place however appeared normal, quiet except for the sound of the fan blowing hot air around the store and the muted sound of some television quiz show. A middle aged man with greying black hair and dark eyes sat on a stool behind the counter, his eyes glued on the screen as he took a sip of coke from the can he was currently cradling in his hand.

The man glanced away from the television screen when Dean entered, looking him up and down carefully before he nodded once to him and turned his attention away, clearly satisfied that Dean wasn't any sort of threat towards him. The thought that someone assumed that Dean was harmless was enough to bring a small grim smile to his face. He wondered how the man would have reacted if he had known that Dean would have been able to kill him in at least a hundred ways and not even break a sweat while doing it. Yet there had been something about him which placed the man at ease enough that he didn't even feel the need to watch it. He found the whole thing bizarre.

Dean shook his head, walking around the store picking up random food before putting them back down. They were roughly two hours away from Jericho so he doubted they needed any major supplies. They could eat in the local diner once they were there.

He bit the inside of his mouth before he shrugged and grabbed a chocolate bar and two large bags of crisps. He took care of Tansy's stuff next before he walked up to the counter and dumped the lot onto the surface. Whistling softly to himself Dean grabbed two clean empty coffee cups from the small tower next to the machine and filled them both up with coffee. He left his black while pouring two creams and one sugar into Sam's cup.

"That everything for ya?" the man drawled in a thick accent, his attention now firmly fixed on Dean as Dean placed the two cups next to his small pile. He glanced down at them before he nodded.

"Just these and the petrol" Dean responded. The man glanced out of the window.

"Black impala yours is it?" the man asked, a look of interest coming to his face as his eyes traced the impala's sleek black body work. Dean followed his gaze, a proud smile coming to his face when he saw how good his baby looked gleaming in the sunlight.

"She's mine alright. Rebuilt her by hand myself" the man nodded his head slowly.

"She's a beaut" he announced sounding impressed "You must be quite the talent boy." The dark eyes flickered over his car again before the man sighed and fished out a calculator from behind the counter, using it to tally the prices up. He glanced at a screen at the side before adding twenty dollars on to the total. He rang it up on the till and looked at Dean. "That's thirty dollars and forty five cents please" he stated.

Dean nodded his head, pulling out his wallet from his back pocket and opened it, a pleased smile coming to his face when he saw that he had the correct change for once. He handed it over to the man who nodded at him.

"Thanks" the man said, passing a brown paper bag to Dean before turning his attention back to the show he was watching, the conversation clearly over in his mind.

Dean rolled his eyes, stuffing the food and Tansy's water into the bag, before he slid the handles over his arms so he could grab the two coffees. He heading out into the sunlight wishing he had remembered to bring his sunglasses as he moved around the car, his attention fixed on his brother.

"Hey" he called out, watching as Sam leaned out of the passenger seat and shot him a questioning look. "You want breakfast to go with your coffee?"

"No thanks Dean, the coffee will do" Sam replied looking away at him. Dean rolled his eyes, glancing back at the area that Tansy and James had gone and wondering whether they would be much longer. "So anyway how exactly did you pay for all this stuff" Sam continued to say, his voice muffled as he withdrew his head back into the car. Dean looked back with a frown. "I mean are you and Dad still running credit card scams or is it now you and your wife who do them together? Must be easier because you can get all those couple cards and stuff"

Dean closed his eyes for a moment, forcing himself to count to ten as he reminded himself that Sam had the tendency of turning into a little bitch when he found himself faced with something he didn't understand or wasn't quite comfortable with. Clearly Sam had decided to punish Dean for getting on with his life by making sarcastic comments directed at him and his wife. It was typical of Sam to try and shift the blame onto others for his own mistakes.

"Yeah well hunting ain't exactly a pro ball career is it Sam" Dean pointed out once he was sure his voice was steady enough not to reveal his anger. He placed the two coffee cups on the petrol pump before he opened the trunk in and threw the bag of food into it. He fished out Tansy's stuff and a chocolate bar for himself before he slammed the lid down, adjusting everything so he could pick the coffees up. He walked around the car knocking on the window and waited impatiently for Sam to lean across the seat and open the driver's door for him.

Dean got in, passing the coffee to Sam who took it from him, immediately taking a sip and shooting Dean a surprised look; clearly he hadn't expected Dean to remember the way he took his coffee.

"Thanks for this Dean" the younger boy remarked settling back in his chair with a sigh as his eyes drifted shut. Dean glanced over at him.

"Just so you know Sam" he remarked coldly attracting Sam's attention. "If you ever speak about my wife that way again I'll knock you the fuck out brother or no brother understood?"

Sam blinked at him.

"Dean I-"he began but Dean interrupted him.

"I get you're pissed off because you weren't at the wedding but the only person you have to blame for that is your self. It's not my fault and it certainly isn't Tansy's so I don't want to hear any of your bitchy bullshit directed at her understood because you have no idea what you're even talking about. I paid for all of this is cash because shocking as it might be for you to believe me and Tansy don't do credit card fraud together because breaking the law isn't exactly what we do for foreplay. So next time you open your mouth to make a comment perhaps you should just think and shut it."

There was a moment's silence in the car before his brother spoke again.

"You and Dad still do it though" Sam pressed. Dean shrugged his shoulder throwing the mint and water on the back seat before he took a sip of his coffee making a hum on appreciation in the back of his throat. The guy inside might have been an idiot but at least he provided decent coffee.

"Only for when we're hunting otherwise we tend to earn money the old fashioned way"

"Wait you're telling me that you actually have some sort of job?" Sam asked a look of sheer disbelief crossing his face.

"Don't sound so surprised Sam" Dean replied shortly. "There's a lot about me you don't know anymore, you didn't think you were the only one who grew up and changed in the time we were apart did you?" he asked shaking his head. "Besides, all we do is apply for the things, its not out fault if they send out the cards without doing the proper checks first"

"Right" Sam said slowly "And tell me Dean, what names did you out on your latest application form?" Dean watched from the corner of his eyes as Sam pulled his legs back into the car, closing the door behind him before he slid his seatbelt into place making it clear that he was ready to hit the road again.

"Err" Dean said, frowning slightly as he tried to remember. He fished out his wallet and opened it, pulling out his latest credit card "I'm Hector Aframian and Dad is now known as Burt Aframian in case you wanted to know" he said with a grin, this was definitely the last time that Dean was going allow his Dad to pick the names they used.

"And what about that one?" Sam asked reaching over and tapping his finger against the other credit card in Dean's wallet. Dean glanced down at it.

"That one says Dean Adams" he replied, closing his wallet and stuffing it back into his coat pocket "Adams was Tansy's last name before she married me so we each have one with that name which we used when it come to James. Winchester isn't exactly safe to use when it comes to this sort of thing" Dean remarked.

"So your son is called James Adams?" Sam asked. Dean glared at him.

"He's a Winchester and so is Tansy" he snapped "Adams is just used on the credit card Sam"

Sam stared at him for a moment before he shrugged turning his attention back to the box he was still holding in his lap.

"I swear to god man you have got to update your tape collection" he said changing the subject.

"Why?" Dean asked in confusion, dropping his gaze down to the tapes, they all looked fine to him and last time he had checked they all still worked.

"Well for one Dean they're cassette tapes and two" Sam held up some of the tape in his hand "Black Sabbath, Motorhead and Metallica. It's the greatest hits of mullet rock all in one little box"

Dean reached across and snatched one of the tapes from his brother, a smile coming to his face when he noticed that Tansy was heading back to the car with James in her arms. A smile on her face as she listened to whatever it was James was saying to her. He waited until she had thrown the baby bag back into the trunk and got into the back seat, strapping James into her seat.

She glanced up at them shooting them a questioning look.

"Have I missed something?" she asked curiously, picking up her bottle and unscrewing the top, her eyes fixed on Dean. Dean grinned at her.

"You're just in time Tans to hear me explain to Sammy boy here was the Winchester house rules are" he stated as he pushed the tape in his hand into the tape player.

"He insulted your music didn't he?" she asked shaking her head as she handed the keys over to Dean. "You never insult the music" Sam glanced back at her before he looked at Dean.

"I'm sorry, the Winchester house rules, I don't remember any house rules"

"That's because Sammy you weren't around. These are the Dean Winchester branch of the family rules"

"He means our rules" Tansy remarked "Him, me and little man here"

"Exactly the Dean Winchester branch" Dean said "And rule number one is that the driver picks the music and shotgun shuts his cake hole"

Dean shot Sam a pointed smile before he dropped the empty cassette holder back into the box. He started the engine grinning widely at the way his baby purred.

"You know Sammy is a chubby twelve years old" Sam said sullenly over the roar of the engine. "It's just Sam now okay?" he stated. Dean hit the volume button for the music; glancing back at James to make sure the music wasn't too loud for him. He grinned when he noticed that his son had automatically started to head bop to the music.

"Sorry I can't hear you, the music is too loud Sammy" he answered with a laugh as he took another sip of coffee before driving away from the gas station.

Jericho here they came.

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Author Note

**So here's the next chapter!**

**I'll be updating next weekend. I'm exhausted after all the stories I've updated this weekend, I think I'm gonna need a week off to recover from it all!**

**Thanks for taking the time to read!**


	10. Chapter 10

Reunion

By

Ava Brett

Disclaimer

**Sam and Dean and the Deputies mentioned in the below work of fiction do not belong to me.**

**Tansy and James however do**

Author Note

**So here's the next chapter for you all.**

**I'm loving this story so much so I hope you all are as well.**

**I like writing a confident intelligent Dean **

Overall Summary

**When Sam left for Stanford it never occurred to him that life would go on without him, now his brother is back, needing his help in locating their father but he isn't alone. Sam needs to figure out where he stands now and decide once and for all whether he is a Winchester of not.**

Chapter Summary

**The Winchesters arrive at Jericho…**

Overall Romances

**Dean Winchester/Tansy Winchester (OFC) and Sam Winchester/Jessica Moore**

Romance for this chapter

**Dean Winchester / Tansy Winchester (OFC)**

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Chapter Ten

* * *

**1****st**** November 2005**

**11:47 AM**

**Centennial High Way**

**Jericho**

**California **

* * *

Sam Winchester's Point of View

* * *

Sam nodded his head slowly as he listened to the nurse on the other end of the phone assure him in a soothing voice that there were currently no John Does who had been received either at the hospital or the local morgue. The last John Doe they had in was over a week ago and it was clear to Sam that it wasn't their father. Not only did the description the nurse give him not match their father's appearance but the voice mail their father left on Dean's mobile pointing to him being alive and able to speak two days ago

"Thank you" he commented when she had finished speaking, hanging up the phone with a soft sigh, dropping the mobile on the file in his lap. That had been a waste of his time.

He shifted in his chair, looking back over his shoulder, a small smile coming to his face when he saw that his nephew was fast asleep, his face pushed right up against the side of his baby seat as he breathed softly in and out, one hand clutched round a small blue elephant which looked as though it had seen better days, a quick glance to the side of him showed that Tansy had dozed off as well, her head resting against the window, her breath misting the glass.

Sam turned back to the front, turning his gaze towards Dean. His brother was staring ahead of him, his eyes focused on the road in front of them as he hummed quietly in time with the music which was playing in the background, a thoughtful look on his face which made Sam wonder what Dean was actually thinking about. Knowing Dean it was probably when he would be getting his next helping of pie. Sam reached out, running a hand through his hair as he breathed out loudly and spoke.

"All right, so there's no one matching Dad's description at either the hospital or the morgue so that's something I guess"

Dean remained silent, glancing towards Sam for a moment before he nodded once and turned his attention back to the road, a small frown appearing on his face. Sam waited for a moment to see whether Dean would actually say something before he turned his attention back to the file in front of him, figuring that he might as well do something useful with his time. He was incredibly impressed by Dean's work, he couldn't remember his brother being this organised the last time they had hunted together to the point that he had file cases, very good, well researched file cases at that. It was certainly something which their father hadn't taught them making Sam wonder whether Dean had picked the habit up from.

He felt the car slow down and glanced at the speed metre, smiling slightly to him self when he noticed that it was beneath the speed limit. Dean had certainly become a safer driver since the last time Sam had been in the car when Dean had been determined to break every speed limit he could. Now he kept to them, doing nothing to draw attention to them. Sam supposed that it had something to do with Dean's special cargo in the back seat.

"Hey check it out" Dean suddenly remarked loudly, his hands tightening on the steering wheel as he glanced out of his window. Sam glanced up from reading about the second victim just as Tansy came awake in the back seat with a startled sound. Sam glanced round at the sound to see her sit up looking around her groggily, trying to get her bearings. She reached up covering her mouth as she yawned, the other hand running down her hair in an attempt to smooth her hair.

"What is it? Are we at Jericho yet?" she asked staring at the back of Dean's head before she switched her attention to James, watching him for a moment to see whether Dean's voice had disturbed him

"Yeah Tans, I think it's safe to say we've reached Jericho" Dean answered, pulling the car to the side of road and staring out of the impala window intently. Sam glanced at him quickly before he bent forwards slightly so he could have a clear view. His eyes narrowed as he took in the scene in front of them. A metal bridge had been taped off while several men dressed in police uniforms swarmed over it clearly searching for something.

Sam raised an eyebrow, biting down on his lower lip. Clearly there had been another attack while they had been driving here.

He looked towards Dean, watching as his brother looked away from the scene in front of him, with a look of determination on his face. He killed the engine, opening up the small glove department in-between them and pulled out a slim metal box which looked as though it had once contained cigars. Sam's eyes dropped down to it when Dean flipped the lid open to reveal a whole array of different badges and IDS card all with different names on them. The majority of them seemed to belong to his brother and sister in law if the pictures were anything to go by though Sam could see a few with their father's face peering out. Clearly Dean kept some with him in case he ever ended up on a case with their Dad.

"Which one do you think Tansy?" Dean asked absently, his hand searching through the box as he raised his eyes to consider the scene in front of them once more.

"The Federal Marshal badge" Tansy replied instantly. "It's a shame you aren't in a suit but you could probably blag it."

"Don't I always?" Dean replied sounding amused. He selected the Marshall badge and dropped it on his lap before glancing at Sam. "Sorry Sammy boy, we didn't have time to make you one and I doubt you can pass as Dad quite yet" he remarked with a crooked smile before he looked over his shoulder, his gaze softening at the sight of his sleeping son before he turned to meet Tansy's eyes. "Are you going to be okay to stay here with Jago while me and Sam go and check out what's happened?" he asked. Tansy glanced at the scene, her eyes lingering on the car which the police were standing around before her eyes flickered to their son, finally meeting Dean's eyes. She nodded.

"Go and knock yourselves out" she answered, moving forward on her chair so she could wrap her hand round the back of Dean's neck, her thumb gently stroking the bottom of his hair line. Sam looked away feeling strangely embarrassed about witnessing the moment. "I'll stay here, out of sight. Just try not to sass anyone this time love. I really don't want to have to waste time hauling your ass out of jail yet again because you don't know when to keep quiet."

"Give me an example on when that has happened?" Dean demanded, sounding distinctly amused. Tansy pretended to look thoughtful.

"How about the time you nearly got thrown in jail because you got lippy in Chicago?"

Dean laughed.

"I got lippy in Chicago?" he repeated in disbelief "That's not quite how I remember it Tansy, I'm pretty sure that you were the one getting lippy with him. I just happened to put him in his place when he got in your face" Dean remarked.

"You shoved him over into the mud" Tansy remarked, sounding amused.

"He deserved it" Dean answered.

"He was the Sherriff" she commented. Dean glanced back at her, his grin firmly in place.

"So he deserved it even more for being an ass in power" he turned his attention to Sam and nudged him "Ready to get back into the game Sammy?" he asked, finding the door handle and pushing it open. He exited the car letting in a cold wind before he slammed it lightly behind him.

Sam grabbed the handle to the passenger door and hesitated for a moment, his gaze fixed on the scene. Was he ready? If he did this and got out of the car then he knew there would be no way back. Things would change for him. Hell things had already changed since the moment Jessica set eyes on Dean and his family. She would never allow it to go back to the way to the way it was before. Would his brother expect him to help on other jobs if he was available or was this really just a one off thing?

He swallowed, closing his eyes briefly, trying to sort out the mixed emotions he was experiencing.

He jumped when Tansy spoke, breaking the silence which had descended in the car.

"I wouldn't keep him waiting yet again if I was you" she commented coolly. Sam glanced back at her in surprise, meeting her blue eyes. It had been the first time she had spoken to him since Dean had introduced them back at his and Jessica's apartment. Sam met her blank expression and shifted his shoulders slightly. She might have been looking at him with a blank expression but he could feel the weight of her disapproval pushing down on him.

He narrowed his eyes feeling a flare of anger at her.

"Don't tell me how to handle my own brother as though I don't know him. I grew up with him" he responded angrily. Tansy tilted her head at him, a small smile coming to her face as though she genuinely found his response amusing.

"That's rich coming from the man who abandoned his brother the minute he could" she said softly. "You don't even know who Dean is anymore Sam. Perhaps you should take the time to learn about him before you assume you know how to handle him because trust me when I say that old Dean is gone and he isn't coming back."

Sam stared at her for a moment, his mouth falling open when she raised a challenging eyebrow at him, clearly waiting to hear what his response would be. Sam closed his mouth licking his lips nervously, he was about to reply when a sudden sharp knock against the window attracted his attention. He looked towards the sound, meeting Dean's impatient look through the glass as the older man pointed his finger directly at Sam before jerking it over his shoulder in the direction of the crime scene.

"Enjoy Sam" Tansy remarked casually as though the previous conversation had never occurred. Sam glanced back over his shoulder at her with a glare but she ignored him, her attention on James as the small boy began stirring in his chair.

He climbed out of the car into the cool, fresh air and took a deep breath allowing the light breeze to calm him. He felt strangely unsettled about what Tansy had said, surely Dean couldn't have changed that much. He twisted his body round, slamming the door behind him. Dean was watching him over the roof of the impala.

"What?" Sam asked defensively.

"Nothing" Dean replied, shaking his head and walking away from the impala towards the crime scene, his stride slow and steady giving Sam plenty of time and opportunity to catch up with him. Sam ran a hand through his hair before he jogged lightly after Dean, matching his stride once he was at his side. "Everything ok?" Dean suddenly asked, his gaze fixed straight ahead. For a split second Sam considered telling his brother what Tansy said in the car but he swiftly pushed the impulse away. He was an adult now and he would handle the situation with his sister in law. He wondered briefly if Dean would automatically take his wife's side over his now or whether there would still have been some hesitation.

"Yep no problems at all" he assured Dean, squinting in the bright sunlight as he looked towards the bridge. He could make out three police man standing around a black car which had been haphazardly parked in the middle of the bridge. Sam watched as a medium sized black man dressed neatly in a deputy's uniform shouted over the edge of the bridge to someone who was clearly in the water rushing by beneath them.

"You find anything?" The answer he received back was clearly negative because the deputy lightly smacked his hands against the metal railings before he turned to face the other deputy with him, a look of frustration and disappointment on his face.

Sam risked a quick glance at Dean but his brother ignored the look, all his attention fixed on the scene playing out in front of them.

The closer they got to the bridge the clearer Sam could hear the conversation going on between the two deputies.

"It's the same, there's no sign of a struggle, there's no footprints or fingerprints. The whole place is spotless, too spotless if you ask me. The car belonged to a teenager; there should be something because no teenager would keep their car this clean"

Sam followed Dean's lead as his brother ducked under the flapping yellow police tape and entered the crime scene.

It never failed to surprise Sam how much Dean could blend into any given situation. Even dressed as he was in jeans, a t-shirt with a light jacket on he still looked as though he belonged at the crime scene. The older man seemed to exude a confidence and authority which everyone ended up responding to whether they had any intention of doing so or not. Dean had been beginning to exhibit it before Sam left for Stanford but nothing compared to the level he showed now. Sam briefly wondered what else had changed in the years they had been parted from each other.

"So" the first Deputy said, leaning on the open passenger door as he spoke to the Deputy kneeling on the floor by the driver's door, an awkward sympathetic look. "This kid Troy, he was the one who was dating your youngest wasn't he?" he queried.

"Yep he's the one, decent kid you know, it's a damn shame this has happened to him, he was going places" the second deputy answered with an angry sigh. He sounded weary as he pulled of his adhesive gloves and pushed himself to his feet, running a tired hand over his face.

"How exactly is Amy doing? She holding up ok?" the first deputy pushed.

"Not really" came the short reply. "She's downtown putting up missing posters, she seems to think it will do some good and I didn't have the heart to stop her, why crush her hope you know?"

The first deputy remained silent clearly having nothing to add.

"You fellas had another case just like this one last month didn't you?" Dean remarked, breaking the silence which had fallen between the two Deputies who had both clearly become lost in their own gloomy thoughts. Sam remained quiet, staying back when Dean took a step forward. He was curious to see how Dean would handle the situation, would he be the same as he used to be, aggressive and pushing for answers or had he changed the way he interacted with law enforcement and potential witnesses like he seemed to have changed everything else.

The first Deputy straightened, looking at them in surprise as his dark eyes flickered up and down their bodies, taking in their clothes and their obvious youth.

"And who exactly are you?" he demanded, his hand coming to rest near his hip and gun. Dean fished out his bag from his pocket, flipping it open and flashing it at the Deputy with a casual confidence, his face remaining serious and focused on the task at hand.

"Federal Marshals" Dean responded gravely, closing the badge and slipping it back into his jacket. The Deputy stared at him in shock before he spoke, his voice sounding suspicious.

"You're awfully young to be a Marshal"

"Why thanks, that's awfully kind of ya to say" Dean drawled, tilting his head as a slight self deprecating smile came to his face. "To be honest with you, you're not the first person to say that to me. What can I say? They're desperate for people to apply so they are picking younger and younger people all the time to inject some fresh blood into it. At least that's what the reports say. All I care about if the fact that I get health insurance and a fairly decent wage" the Deputy stared at him for a moment before a faint smile came to his face.

"Maybe I should think about applying, we don't exactly get health insurance here in Jericho" Sam watched as Dean laughed, cementing the camaraderie he had easily built between him self and the Deputy. Sam blinked, barely able to keep his mouth from falling open. Not even their Dad had been able to do it so easily and simply. A few carefully chosen words and Dean was in.

The Deputy stepped back a step allowing Dean to walk past him towards the abandoned car though he stepped forward blocking off Sam's route, the eyes which turned to him were still suspicious. Sam stared back confidently trying to hide his unease at the situation. If the Deputy asked to see his badge then he was screwed.

"You did have another case like this didn't you Deputy-"Dean suddenly said, attracting the Deputy attention away from Sam.

"Jaffe, Willis Jaffe" the deputy answered automatically turning to Dean, Sam let out a small sigh of relief as the Deputy continued to speak. "We did have another like this, just about a mile up on the road from here heading north. There have been others though, all with the same MO as this one. The driver disappears without any trace whatsoever, there's no forensics to work on, no nothing.

Dean nodded his head slowly, reaching up and pinching his lower lip between his finger tips as his eyes skirted around the crime scene, lingering on certain areas. He turned his attention to the second Deputy who was watching them both.

"You said the car was completely clean?" he asked, the Deputy nodded, looking pleased at being included in the conversation.

"Nothing, even the steering wheel was wiped down. We couldn't even find any trace of Troy being in the car though he obviously was, eye witnesses have him leaving work and driving off in it, he never reached home. His parents rang it in this morning."

Dean nodded, his eyes narrowing slightly in concentration. Sam watched him for a second before he turned back to Deputy Jaffe.

"Deputy Jaffe, did you know the victim at all?" he queried. The Deputy nodded, his eyes flickering between Sam and Dean before he answered.

"I did, Troy Squire was his name, he just turned nineteen, a town this size everyone tends to know everyone else by face if not by their name. He was a decent kid."

Sam nodded, watching as Dean circled the car once more, hunching down and checking beneath the car; Sam raised an eyebrow as Dean pushed him self back to his feet. His gaze flickered to Sam for a moment before he turned his attention back to Deputy Jaffe.

"Have you found anymore connection between the victims other then the fact that they've all been men?" Deputy Jaffe shook his head, shrugging slightly.

"No nothing substantial yet" he stated "And trust me when I say we've been looking into all different angles, nothing seems to link them all together. I mean Troy wasn't even born when the first incident occurred"

"Do you have a current theory?" Sam asked, taking advantage of the Deputy's preoccupation and slipping past him, making his way over to Dean's side.

"Honestly?" Deputy Jaffe responded sounding frustrated. "We just don't know. Maybe it's a serial murderer? Kidnapping ring? Whatever is happening they've got the time to select their victim, kill or kidnap them and clean the entire crime scene so there's absolutely no trace of anything. You would expect there to be something? Some clue which might have indicated that these men put up some sort of a struggle but-"his voice trailed off again.

"So what you're telling us Deputy is that the whole police force is stumped on this case, that's the kind of police work I expect from other states without the resources you have, have you-" Sam stamped down hard on Dean's foot, ignoring the gasp of pain that escaped Dean's mouth breaking off his tirade against the Deputy. He couldn't believe that Dean had been lecturing the Deputy for shoddy work. Did Dean want to draw unwanted attention towards them?

Sam forced a polite smile onto his face as he stepped away from Dean and began walking back down the bridge towards where the impala was parked.

"Thank you for your time" Sam remarked over his shoulder aware of Dean following him. "Gentleman" Sam said, nodding at the other police man who was watching him.

"We'll be in touch Deputy Jaffe" Dean remarked.

"Well here's hoping you have more luck finding something then we have, maybe all that's needed is a fresh pair of eyes" the Deputy remarked.

Sam continued walking trying to calm his racing heart as he realised with a sickening feeling in the pit of his stomach that he had just broken the law by impersonating a member of the law, if it got out then his chance for his scholarship would be gone in a flash, everything he worked for destroyed.

He winced as Dean sharply slapped the back of his head with the palm of his hand, an angry look plastered on his face.

"Ow! What the hell Dean? What was that for?" he demanded angrily, surprised when Dean continued to glare at him.

"That was for stamping on my foot Sam" he hissed looking furious. "In front of three policeman when I'm trying to fish for answers while impersonating a federal marshal" he stated quietly, a cold tone to his voice which sent a chill down Sam's spine. "Do you think Sam that Fucking Federal Marshals step on each others feet like children?" he demanded.

Sam swallowed nervously.

"I only did it because of the way you were speaking to them Dean, you think talking to them like they are stupid is the best way to get answers from them because it seems like a dumbass move to me" Sam snapped back. Dean quickened his step, turning round and blocking Sam's way.

"Sam I was trying to find out exactly what they knew, sometimes the only way to do that is to question their methods and make them believe they've missed something because then nine times out of ten they reveal something to you which they had originally had no plans on sharing. We both know that got no idea what they are looking for. If we want to find Dad then we need to get to the bottom of this case and figure out what the hell is happening here ourselves"

Sam opened his mouth to retort when he stopped coughing instead. Dean shot him a confused look before he turned round to face the Sheriff and two FBI agents who were standing with him, all three of them watching the pair of them closely.

"Can I help you boys with something?" the Sheriff demanded stiffly. Dean shook his head.

"No Sir, we were just leaving" Sam forced a smile onto his face when the FBI agents passed them, almost rolling his eyes when Dean nodded at them both with a curt "Agent Mulder, Agent Scully" before his brother started walking again, head down giving Sam no choice but to follow him. Sam was aware of the Sheriff's eyes burning into the back of his skull but ignored it, thankfully slipping into the safety of the car.

"So how exactly did it go then?" Tansy asked the minute Dean got into the car and shut the door behind him. "Did you manage to learn anything useful"? She glanced at the crime scene with a look on her face which made Sam feel as though she regretted letting him go with Dean instead of her self.

"You mean did I learn something other then the fact that Sammy still acts like a kid?" he asked in annoyance. Sam's head whipped round so he could glare at Dean who simply ignored him as though he wasn't there. His attention fixed on his wife.

"Erm yep?" she remarked casually.

"They know nothing Tans. It does throw out the theory that something human was doing this. It's definitely supernatural which means it's up to us to deal with it as usual"

Sam glanced round in time to see Tansy nod her head, pinching her lower lip the same way Dean did when he was thinking something through.

"Anything else?" she asked curiously, reaching out and handing James his toy when he threw it on the chair.

"The new victim has a girlfriend. According to her Dad, Deputy depressed over there, she's downtown putting up leaflets. It might be worth finding her and having a word. She might know something or at least know about any local legends which might fit the bill"

"Sounds like a good place to start" Sam said, determined not to be left out of the conversation any longer, not when it used to be conversation that Dean had with him. Conversations he suddenly found himself missing fiercely.

"Good let's go then before the Sheriff realises we haven't fucked off yet" Dean answered shortly, glancing at Sam from the corner of his eyes before he started the car up and drive away from the crime scene without a backwards glance.

* * *

Author note

**Another chapter done and dusted.**

**The next one will be up over the weekend!**

**Thanks for reading **


	11. Chapter 11

Reunion

By

Ava Brett

Disclaimer

**The characters of Sam, Dean, Amy and Rachel do not belong to me; they belong to the creator of supernatural because they were the characters in this particular scene during the pilot.**

**The characters of Tansy and James however do belong to me so please do not use them without permission.**

**As usual I am only using the characters for my own entertainment purposes not for anything else**

Author Note

**So here we have the first real chapter done from Tansy's point of view. I thought it was important to see through her eyes occasionally to give some depth to the story but also so we can see a third person's view of how Sam and Dean interact with each other.**

**It's been highly fun writing this entire story, I can't explain to you how much I look forward to writing it and how much it means to me that you guys are reading it. Not only reading it but leaving me reviews and PMs over it, or adding it as a favourite or following it. It's just amazing! I've never written a story which I've loved quite as much as this one.**

**So enjoy the newest offering from me to you **

Overall Summary

**When Sam left for Stanford it never occurred to him that life would go on without him, now his brother is back, needing his help in locating their father but he isn't alone. Sam needs to figure out where he stands now and decide once and for all whether he is a Winchester of not.**

Chapter Summary

**After finding Amy the Winchesters receive their first lead in the case.**

Overall Romances

**Dean Winchester/Tansy Winchester (OFC), Sam Winchester/Jessica Moore and Troy Squire/Amy Hein**

Romance for this chapter

**Dean Winchester / Tansy Winchester (OFC) and Troy Squire/Amy Hein, Brief mention of Sam Winchester/Jessica Moore**

* * *

Chapter Eleven

* * *

**1st November 2005**

**12:25 PM**

**Down Town**

**Jericho**

**California**

* * *

Tansy Winchester Point of View

* * *

"So this is Downtown Jericho then" Tansy remarked casually, wrinkling her nose up in distaste as she looked behind her. "Is it just me or does it pretty much looks exactly the same as both the Upper and mid town portion of the town? Do you think they have a tiny little lines painted on the ground which indicates the change in which part of Jericho you're now in?" She looked back towards her husband and brother in law, tilted her head to the side as she continued to scan the street they were on with a curious, watchful expression on her face.

Downtown Jericho looked the same as every other small town which she and Dean had encountered over the past few years during their various hunting trips. There was absolutely nothing about it which she could see which made it stand out from the others in her mind.

Shaking her head, she reached down and adjusted the strap on James's baby bag so it rested more comfortably on her shoulder before her attention turned away from the street and the buildings which had clearly all seen better days, to focus on the people who were milling around them, people who could easily be a threat to her family and one which she would have no problem eliminating if it came down to it. She had always been pretty observant when it came to picking out slight differences in human behaviour, if there was anything even slightly off then she would notice it and use it for her advantage.

She was good but her talent paled in comparison to Dean's. It had taken her exactly two days of hunting with Dean to realise that the other man could look at a person for a second and know exactly how to work them to gain what he wanted. She had watched him use the skill with various victims, witnesses, law enforcement officers, hell she had even seen him use it against the people they were hunting and always with the same effect. Regardless of who or what they were, they would always end up telling Dean exactly what he wanted to know whether that had been their originally intention or not.

There were only a few people walking about the street, most of them as far as she could tell were heading into the small delis and restaurants littered around the area to pick up some lunch, either talking away on their mobile phone, or chatting casually to the person walking next to them or failing that merely staring straight ahead of them with a glum expression on their faces. Tansy often referred to the look in her head as the 'small town blues' expression. She had seen it all over the country and always felt the same slight flicker of pity towards the individual. She knew that the majority of them would never leave the small town they had been born and raised in, they would never realise what fantastic things were out there which they were missing out on because they refused to do something which wasn't considered completely safe.

None of them turned to look at her or the two men with her; it was as though their eyes simply moved past them as if they weren't standing there blocking part of the sidewalk. It was slightly disconcerting and yet Tansy couldn't detect anything which sent her internal Hunter warning system into action. As far as she could tell they were all merely bored individuals getting on with their everyday boring existence.

It was quite sad overall.

Shaking her head, Tansy pushed the sleeve of her duffle coat back so she could glance at the watch on her wrist.

12.27 In the afternoon. They needed to find the girl who the Deputies had mentioned and talk to her before James realised how hungry he was and began screaming his woes to the world at large. Her son was the sweetest tempered boy normally but the minute he was hungry that was it, he became a little demon.

"It wouldn't surprise me if they do but I'm guessing that's small towns for you Tans, when do they ever look different from each other? I think they only separate the place into sections to make themselves think that the town is bigger then it actually is" Dean replied, throwing her a smirk over his shoulder before he glanced around again, a slight frown coming to his face. "I doubt she's going to be hard to find, there can't be too many girls hanging around here, plastering missing poster to the wall unless she's got a whole army of friends helping her." He shifted his grip on James, moving the boy in his arms so he was resting against his hip.

"The way the Winchester luck seems to work that's probably what she's done." Tansy remarked, wrapping her coat around her tighter and shivering in the cold breeze, she should have put her scarf on that morning instead of packing it away and believing that California would live up to its hype and actually become warm and sunny.

Her attention moved away from her husband to focus on her brother in law instead. Sam stood behind Dean, his hands stuck in his jacket pockets as he stared up at the overcast sky with a thoughtful frown, seemingly trapped within his own thoughts. Tansy wondered briefly what he was thinking about. Was it the case? Was he thinking about Jessica? Maybe he was thinking about the interview on Monday and what he was going to say to them. She sighed quietly looking away from him. She had more important things to think of at the moment without trying to puzzle out what Sam was thinking about. Dean needed her full attention on the case and that was what he was going to get. She just hoped that when they solved it, it would lead them straight to John because she dreaded to think what it would do to Dean if it didn't.

"I bet you a slice of good old apple pie that, that's our girl right there" Dean suddenly said, lifting up his free hand and pointing down the street. Tansy followed his gaze before nodding her agreement. There was a young girl of about seventeen or eighteen standing in front of a large building sticking a sheet of paper to the wall. The building still looked fairly grand even though it was clearly in bad condition. It was almost a shame because it would have looked amazing if they had simply fixed it up.

"Yeah I'm thinking that would be a bet you'd win hands down Dean" Sam remarked, breaking his silence. He looked at Dean with a small smile on his face as he lifted a questioning eyebrow. "Still willing to do anything for a slice of pie then?" he asked, a fond note slipping into his voice. Dean glanced over at him and grinned.

"Well just about anything Sammy, I wouldn't sell my family for a slice for example; I've still got a few standards left after all" Dean responded, he took his eyes off Sam, focusing them on James instead as he reached up and forced their son's hat back onto his head when the small boy tried to rip it off. "Leave it on Jago" he remarked sternly before looking back at Sam.

"What about for the whole pie?" Sam answered, his smile growing into a grin when Dean chuckled at the remark.

"Well that would depend on what kind of pie it was and whether it had come fresh out of the oven wouldn't it" he teased back, Tansy watched as he ran his hand though his short hair before he dropped it, resting it on James's back as he spoke. "Let's get this over and done with, all this talk of pie is making me hungry, I could do with some lunch." He remarked, his look of determination belying his casual tone as he turned and walked down the street towards the building and the girl.

Tansy followed him, rolling her eyes when Sam automatically took the spot next to Dean forcing her to walk slightly behind them. She smiled when Dean glanced back at her to make sure she was following them but she remained where she was watching the two of them carefully. They were beginning to fit back together like two jigsaw pieces which belonged but which had become warped over time making it hard to piece them back together. She just hoped that Dean wouldn't be disappointed when Sam went back to his normal life after this hunt because it was extremely clear to Tansy that, that was what Sam was going to do.

The two brothers shared a quick speaking look with each other clearly decided who would take the lead in the conversation before they stopped by the girl. Dean spoke, his voice soft and friendly, easily carrying over the cool air.

"So you've gotta be Amy right?" he asked.

The girl started, turning around and looking at them, her eyes widening. Tansy couldn't blame her reaction to the brothers really, finding your self blocked in by two six foot plus men must have been fairly intimidating if you weren't expecting it. She noted the instant tension which came to her girl's face as her shoulders hunched up. She looked ready to bolt or to open her mouth and scream for some assistance from someone when she suddenly relaxed.

Tansy frowned slightly, stepped to the side of Dean so she could see past his back to what was actually happening, curious about what had caused the change in the girl's attitude. The girl's gaze was fixed on James with a look of relief; the small boy was snuggled against his father's chest looking peaceful and content if slightly sleepy and clearly felt extremely safe. Tansy understood instantly. Amy had clearly decided in her head that if a child was involved then it meant that they were more likely to be friends rather then a threat to her. Murderers and psychopaths didn't tend to have small children with them.

"Yeah I'm Amy" she replied slowly, her eyes moving up to meet their eyes with a careful, uneasy expression. "Who are you exactly? I haven't seen you around town before."

"We're visiting from Modesto" Dean answered, a comforting smile coming to his face which further placed her at ease "We're here about Troy, Amy. He's mentioned you a few times over the phone to us. We're his Uncles, I'm Dean and this here is Sam. This" he said reaching over and wrapping his arm around Tansy's shoulder. "Is my wife Tansy and this little trouble maker is our son James" he bounced James in his arms, smiling when the small boy giggled, wrapping his small arms around Dean's neck.

"Silly Daddy" James stated before he snuggled his face into Dean's neck.

Amy watched them for a moment, a look of indecision on her face as she clearly tried to figure out whether Troy had mentioned them to her before. She was actually a pretty girl, Tansy noticed with light brown-red hair and pale blue eyes which were heavily lined with thick black eye liner. She was dressed all in black as well pointing to her following the Goth style of fashion which Tansy had seen recently in some fashion magazines.

"Troy never mentioned having any Uncles to me" she finally said, a suspicious note coming to her voice as her eyes moved over their faces again. She turned and walked quickly away from them heading towards the wall on the other side of the doorway. Tansy shared a quick look with Dean who nodded in response and followed her, Sam right behind him.

"Well that doesn't surprise me greatly, I mean you know Troy, his mind was always elsewhere. As I said, we're up in Modesto most of the time and-"

"So we're looking for him to" Sam interrupted, walking around Dean so he was standing in front of Amy, his hands slightly to the side of him so she could see them. Tansy waited to see what would happen curious to see what Sam had to say. Dean had always said in the past that Sam had a talent when it came to putting witnesses at ease. Now she had seen him in the flesh she could understand why that was, Sam had the whole kicked puppy look around him which people, especially women, would instantly respond to before they even realised they were. "And we're kinda asking around the place trying to find out what could have happened to him-"

"Hey is everything okay here Amy?"

Tansy glanced round at the interruption watching as a young woman about the same age as Amy came up to them. She touched Amy's arm with a concerned look on her face before she turned to look at Dean and Sam, her concerned look morphing into a glance of surprised appreciation before she frowned at them. Tansy resisted rolling her eyes at the blatant snub the other girl gave her.

"Yeah everything is fine here" Amy reassured the other girl, her eyes moving in-between their face. She looked incredibly worn out, her shoulders slumping down as though she was being crushed by an invisible weight, Tansy supposed she was.

"I understand this is hard for you but all we want to do is ask you a few questions Amy, nothing more I swear it" Sam assured her ignoring the other girl. Amy looked unconvinced, taking a slight step back clearly retreating from them and the situation.

"I don't know what-"her voice trailed off leaving her looking distressed for a moment. She glanced towards her friend clearly about to refuse them. If she did that then they would have to leave her be and that would complicate matters. Amy was the only solid lead they had at the moment and that was only assuming that she actually had something to tell them. Still a maybe was better then having nothing.

Tansy gently shrugged off Dean's arm and took a step forward, a gentle sympathetic smile coming to her face. Amy's eyes moved to her, searching her face carefully before more tension left her body in a pained sigh; clearly she didn't view Tansy as any sort of threat to her.

"I can't imagine how you must feel right now" Tansy remarked softly, taking another step forward so she was within touching distance of Amy. "All the worry and confusion about Troy must be eating you up inside not to mention all the questions going around your head. I mean you want answers right? Who wouldn't but there's always that nagging thought of whether you'll get the answers you crave. If it was Dean who was missing then I'd be doing exactly the same thing you're doing now" she stated indicating the missing posters which Amy still held tightly in her hand. "Anything is better then sitting at home doing nothing right?"

Amy nodded slowly.

"I have to do something" she said looking down at the paper as though she had forgotten she was holding them. "I mean I know they say that a person is technically missing until twenty four hours have passed or something and it's only been like eight but this isn't like Troy, he wouldn't just disappear and he would have rang or texted me to tell me where he was going. He always would, we were gonna leave this place together and-" she stopped, biting down on her lip hard, her eyes sliding past them as she blinked quickly, obviously holding back her tears.

"I know we're strangers to you but all we want to do is help Amy. As soon as Troy' parents rang us early this morning we came but to be honest with you we don't know the area too well so if there's anything you can tell us, whether you think it means nothing or not then that can make the different. All we want to do if find Troy and bring him back to where he belongs. I figure you want the same thing as well so why don't we help each other out?"

Amy looked at her before she nodded, a look of determination coming to her face.

"I- I can do that. We know quite a lot of stuff about the place, I mean if you really think it will help find Troy then-"

"It will" Sam stated quietly. Amy started as though she had forgotten about the other two even being there. Before she could say anything Dean spoke.

"Look it's cold out here and I don't really want to hang out here to talk in case little man gets cold" he stated indicating James who was beginning to look cold and grouchy. "Why don't we go into the diner across the street where it's warm and get a drink or something. We can talk there" he suggested.

Amy looked at her friend who nodded.

"Follow me" she said slipping past them and leading the way across the road towards the brightly lit diner. Tansy glanced at both Sam and Dean, shooting the pair of them a pleased look before she turned and followed the two girls, her smile growing when Dean moved to her side, winking at her when she glanced over to him.

The diner was surprisingly empty considering the time so they had no problem in getting a booth big enough for all of them and ordering their drinks which were delivered before they even had a chance to fully settle into their chairs. Tansy slipped off her gloves and wrapped her hand around her warm mug with a thankful sigh. She noticed Amy's friend glance down at her wedding band and engagement ring before they flickered over to Dean's and Sam's left hand clearly trying to determine who she was married to if either of them, a look of disappointment came to her face when she noticed Dean's ring. Tansy dropped her eyes to her coffee, shaking her head slightly, she was more then use to that look.

"So did anything happen the last time you spoke to Troy Amy? Anything which seemed sorta… I don't know off at all? You know with him or maybe he had said something which you thought was weird at the time?" Tansy asked softly.

"I was on the phone with Troy last night around two in the morning" Amy said shakily. "He was driving home after his shift at the bar and grill. I often ring him you know to keep him company because the roads are always empty and he gets bored easily. I – I asked him to come round but he said he couldn't because he had work in the morning; he was saving to buy a new car so he was always working as many shifts as he could. He said he had to go and that he would call me right back and- and I waited up for a bit and then I fell asleep, I didn't mean to but I was just so frigging tired and then when I woke up this morning I noticed he hadn't called me back and he always does normally. He's great like that you know?"

"What happened then?" Sam asked. Amy looked at him and shrugged, brushing a stray piece of hair off her face before she set her shoulders and continued with her story.

"I rang his parents asking if he was there and they checked and he wasn't home so they rang the bar and grill and when they said he hadn't turned up for work that morning they rang the sheriff's office" she said, nervously licking at her lips, one hand tightening on her coke glass while she aimlessly stirred it with her straw with the other.

"And other then telling you that he was going to call you back did he say anything else which was out of the ordinary to you?" Sam pressed gently, a caring look on his face as he watched Amy. Tansy was impressed despite her self. Dean hadn't been lying when he said Sam was good with witnesses.

Amy considered his question carefully for a moment before she shook her head sadly.

"No, it was all just normal boring stuff you know? He said he was tired but he had just worked a crazy shift at the Bar and Grill so that's nothing unusual. It was like he was always tired at the moment; he even slept through some of his lectures at college because he couldn't keep awake." She remarked, her voice cracking a bit at the end.

Tansy's heart went out to her. There was no doubt in her mind that Troy was already dead, she severely doubted whatever it was which had taken him was keeping him alive. Amy would never know what had happened to him. She would always have questions which would never be answered and it was always those questions which tended to scar people, often changing them for the worst or sending them down the path towards becoming a Hunter. She just hoped that Amy was one of the lucky few who managed to come out of the situation stronger then they had been before.

She swallowed, scooting over on the seat so she was pressed against Dean's side, she closed her eyes briefly allowing the heat from his body to warm and comfort her. Man she hated interviews like this one.

Dean turned to her, searching her face for a moment before he reached down and rested his hand on her thigh, squeezing it gently. James was on his lap, ignoring them all as he scribbled away with his crayons on the paper which the waitress had provided them the minutes she had seen the small boy enter. It was a common reaction to James she had noticed, the minutes people saw him was the minute they began fussing over him.

"I like your necklace Amy" Sam suddenly said causing Tansy to look up from her coffee mug, her eyes fixing on the small silver pentagram fixed within a circle which Amy was casually twirling around in her fingers. She glanced down at it with a surprised look as though she had forgotten she was wearing it in the first place.

"Troy gave it to me on our anniversary. I think he did it mostly to scare my parents, you know with all the devil worship stuff" she laughed slightly, the sound sad. Sam made a small sound of amusement attracting both Tansy's and Dean's attention to him. He glanced at them before looking back at Amy and her friend and speaking.

"You know it's actually the opposite of that. A pentagram is used as protection against evil, not for summoning it. It's really powerful; I mean it is if you believe in that kind of thing."

"Why thank you unsolved mysteries for that" Dean remarked, rolling his eyes as he ran a gentle hand over James's curls. He leaned forwards, fixing both girls with a long searching look which caused Amy's friend to blush, Tansy rolled her eyes. "Here's the deal Amy and-"Dean stopped looking over at the other girl with a questioning look.

"Rachel" she supplied with a flirty smile which Dean ignored.

"Amy and Rachel, everyone at this table knows that the way Troy had just disappeared without a trace isn't right so if you've heard something… anything at all then telling us would be pretty good right about now."

"It seriously doesn't matter how farfetched it sounds either" Sam added.

"Because we have heard more weird shit in our lives then you can imagine" Dean finished, leaning back in his chair. He grunted slightly when James suddenly twisted round on his lap and stood up, clutching at Dean's hair to support him self as he looked around him with a look of wide eyed fascination.

The two girls turned and shared a long look with each other.

"What is it?" Tansy asked. "Have you heard something?" The girl Rachel made a small shrugging motion, playing randomly with a packet of sugar before she spoke, looking up at them all with an embarrassed look on her face.

"Well it's just… I mean with all these guys going missing and stuff people tend to talk."

"What do they talk about?" Tansy blinked when she realised that all three of them had spoken at exactly the same time using the same questioning tone. Amy and Rachel shared another quick look.

"Well there's kinda this local legend which had been around for years" Rachel said. "There's this one girl who got murdered out on Centennial like decades ago or something and well the legend says that she never died or you know went away, she's meant to still be out there somewhere" Tansy glanced over sharing a quick look with Sam while Dean tried to stop James from ripping his hair out.

"And what is this girl meant to do exactly?" Tansy asked. Rachel looked over at her.

"Well they say that she stands at the edge of the road and she waits until a car comes and then she hitchhikes and whoever stops to pick her up are never seen again. They just disappear forever" Rachel stated.

Tansy turned to look at the two boys with wide eyes.

They had their lead.

* * *

Author note

**Thanks for taking the time to read.**

**Next chapter is already in the process of being worked on.**


	12. Chapter 12

Reunion

By

Ava Brett

Disclaimer

**The characters of Sam and Dean Winchester do not belong to me; they belong to the creator of supernatural which you know isn't me.**

**The characters of Tansy and James Winchester however do belong to me so please do not use them without my permission.**

**As usual I am only using the characters for my own entertainment purposes not for anything else**

Author Note

**Here's the next chapter for you all!**

**I can't believe that the overall length of this story so far is over eighty pages! Its madness and I'm still only about half way through it all!**

**There is a point in this chapter near the end where the story touches briefly on what Dean was doing during the time he was away from both John and Sam when it was just him and Tansy and of course later on James. This is something which will be touched on in the other stories which will follow this one and will be a major point in some of them.**

**That's right I've decided to make this into a series and to go on for as long as I have the interest to so after this story there will be the next story which will be based on Wendigo so hopefully, you'll all stick with me!**

**Anyway please enjoy **

Overall Summary

**When Sam left for Stanford it never occurred to him that life would go on without him, now his brother is back, needing his help in locating their father but he isn't alone. Sam needs to figure out where he stands now and decide once and for all whether he is a Winchester of not.**

Chapter Summary

**Constance Welch aged twenty four…**

Overall Romances

**Dean Winchester/Tansy Winchester (OFC), Sam Winchester/Jessica Moore and Troy Squire/Amy Hein**

Romance for this chapter

**Dean Winchester / Tansy Winchester (OFC) **

* * *

Chapter Twelve

* * *

**1st November 2005**

**14:50 PM**

**Jericho Central Library**

**Jericho**

**California**

* * *

Dean Winchester's Point of View

* * *

"I'm telling you, if there was something which happened on that highway, some sort of weird death or murder or whatever then there's gonna be something written about it in the local paper. I mean a small town like this? It's the kinda of thing they eat up; a suspicious death has got to be huge news to them." Dean remarked as he pushed open the door to the Jericho central library, shivering under the sudden cold blast of air which hit him directly in the face. Why the hell they had the air condition on when it was November and cold outside was beyond Dean. Having the heating on made sense but this, this was just small town madness to him.

He shook it off, looking around him with a searching look, a smile coming to his face when he saw the old fashioned computer situated at the far end of the room, it wasn't as advanced as he was used to using but Dean could overlook it. It did what he wanted and that was all that he cared about at that moment in time. If they could find an article then they would be one step closer to solving the hunt and one step closer to locating their father and heading back home.

"Are you two okay doing the researching by yourselves for a bit?" Tansy asked as she absently wiped her feet against the entrance mat with a quick glance around the near empty room. "I'm gonna quickly change Jago's nappy and then take him over to the children's library while you get on, with it. Not only will it keep him occupied while you search but also he deserves a treat for being so well behaved today, don't you little man?" she said with a soft smile as she stepped up beside Dean and reached out, wrapping her arms around their son and taking him from his father. Dean watched as she bent her head and kissed James' temple, running a soft hand over his hair before she looked back towards him and Sam with a warning look on her face. "Let me know if you find anything at all ok?" she said, her eyes focusing on Dean's, before she looked back at their son, a warm smile coming to her face as she bounced him up and down lightly in her arms. "Say goodbye to Daddy and Uncle Sammy Jago" she said.

"Bye Daddy" James replied happily giving them a small wave "Bye Unc' Sammy."

"See ya later little man, make sure you're a good boy for mummy and take good care of her ok?" Dean remarked with a grin, watching as Tansy turned away from them and headed across the room towards the door which was marked as the toilets. He sighed, reaching up and rubbing at the bridge of his nose wishing not for the first time that day that he could grab a quick cat nap or failing that down a litre of black coffee just to keep him going.

Shaking his head he lowered his arm, turning to face Sam and stopping when he saw the stunned look on his brother's face.

"What's up with you?" he demanded, twisting round so he could look around the room, as far as he could see there was nothing about the place which was out of the ordinary, certainly nothing which could have placed that look on Sam's face. "Sam? You with me?" he asked with growing concern as he reached out and placed his hand on the younger man's shoulder giving him a small shake to snap him out of it.

Sam suddenly blinked, his eyes focusing on Dean as though he was coming out of a deep trance, shock and surprise mingling together in his expression, Dean raised an eyebrow and waited for Sam to speak to him.

"James… he called me Uncle Sammy" he said faintly after a moment of silence. Dean blinked before he nodded slowly.

"Well… since you kinda are his Uncle Sammy it sorta makes sense that he calls you that" Dean replied carelessly with a shrug. "What else would he call you? Auntie Samantha because you know if that's what you'd prefer to be called then I'm sure we could arrange that, Jago is a smart boy, he'll soon pick up on it." he teased, laughing when Sam shoved him lightly away from him.

"Don't you dare" Sam threatened, running a hand through his hair "I don't know I was just surprised by it that's all but you know Uncle Sammy sorta has a nice ring to it" he answered, a small smile coming to his face. Dean shrugged.

"I personally prefer Auntie Samantha" Dean commented with a wink before he rubbed his cold hands together. "Jesus its cold, I don't know about you but I've no desire to freeze to the freaking spot while you finish having a mini break down so let's head over and grab that computer before some teenage brat takes it and spends the next hour or so reading crap fan fiction on it."

"Who knew that you even knew what fan fiction was" Sam remarked with a laugh as he shoved his hands into his coat pocket. Dean glanced back at him over his shoulder, pulling a face at him before he headed over to the computer aware of his brother following him.

Dean slid into the computer chair and quickly booted the machine up, waiting while it warmed up, Sam had taken the seat next to him but he appeared to be deep in thought leaving the pair of them in a surprisingly comfortable silence. When the computer had logged up Dean brought up the newspaper archive search and staring at it thoughtfully for a moment. He bit the inside of his cheek lightly, rolling his shoulders back to loosen his muscle before he got to work.

Going by the information Amy and Rachel had told them he typed in 'Female murder hitchhiker' and hit the go button, making a sound of surprise when the query came up with no articles, without hesitating he highlighted the word hitchhiker and replaced it with Centennial Highway sending off the request only for it to come back with a negative response again. Either the girls had provided them with rubbish Intel or Dean was missing something, something which was really obvious. He just couldn't figure out what it could be.

"Let me try" Sam stated, reaching out his hand for the keyboard. Dean smacked the hand away from him in annoyance, not bothering to look towards Sam as he focused his full attention on the screen in front of him. Everything the girls had said, had fitted in perfectly, even the way the men all disappeared without trace sounded right.. "Seriously Dean I-"Sam began to say, an undercurrent of annoyance to his voice.

"Thanks for the offer and all Sammy but I've got this one" Dean interrupted, nibbling at his lower lip. He made a sound of annoyance when his computer chair was suddenly shoved away from the desk and the keyboard. "Seriously dude" Dean said, dragging his chair back to the computer and smacking Sam hard on the shoulder. "Still as big a control freak as even I see" he commented, Sam breathed out noisily staring at the screen intently as he nibbled on his lower lip thoughtfully.

"Right so angry spirits are born out of a violent death normally, like a murder or something similar to that, some sort of act which makes the spirit feel as though they've been robbed of their life too early right?" Sam asked Dean, glancing over at him with his fingers poised over the keyboard as he waited for an answer. Dean shot him a suspicious look before he slowly nodded his agreement.

"That tends to be the general idea yeah" Dean agreed. "I mean the dead are pissed off and can't accept that they are dead so they refuse to pass over. Normally its because they feel as though they still have something left here which they need to do but lets me honest its always only a matter of time before the spirit turns angry for some reason, maybe they can't do the thing they wanted to or they see their loved one move on and it makes them angry and when they turn angry they tend to turn violent and people around them tend to either end up hurt of dead. It's always the same way" Dean said, pinching at his lower lip before he released the hold and turned to Sam, a serious expression on his face. "What are you thinking in your oversized brain?" he asked.

"I'm thinking that a violent death doesn't necessarily have to be murder" Sam remarked, Dean frowned as Sam highlighted the word murder and replaced it instead with suicide before he clicked the okay button. One single article came up.

"Good job Sammy" Dean stated, slapping his hand across the top of Sam's back. "You know I would have found it if your control freak tendencies hadn't have taken over yet again." He pointed out, shaking his head with a roll of his eyes when Sam looked over at him with a smug look.

"Sure you would have Dean, it just would have taken you an hour or so" Sam remarked teasingly, looking away as he clicked the link to bring up the newspaper article. Dean ignored Sam's comment, leaning forward and quickly scanning the words as Sam spoke. "It was written in 1981 so that's twenty four years ago."

"Yeah and that was right about the time that the first man went missing" Dean remarked. "So this suicide definitely coincides with our time frame" he pointed out Sam nodded his head, before he leaned forward and began reading out loud from the article.

"Constance Welch, twenty four years old, jumps off Sylvania Bridge. She drowns in the river beneath, apparently according to the ME of the time, she smacked her head on the rocks when she fell and then it was lights out for her permanently" he commented.

Dean looked at the picture of the woman; she was surprisingly pretty with a bright hopeful smile, long dark hair and laughing dark eyes. She looked happy, not the sort of person who six months later would take their own life. Dean swallowed, glancing over his shoulder, his eyes focusing on his wife and son as Tansy read to James, the small boy seated securely in her lap helping Tansy to turn the pages of the book. Constance had been the same age as Tansy was now when she died. It was a thought which made him feel sick inside.

"Does it say why she killed her self?" Dean asked, turning to look at Sam again.

"Yeah the article gives a reason for it." Sam answered quietly, reaching out and running his hand through his hair.

"What reason?" Dean demanded, pulling out his small notebook from his jacket pocket and opening it to a clear page, he uncapped his pen and began jotting down some key notes from the article while Sam spoke.

"Apparently about an hour before they found her body Constance has made a call to 911. Her two kids were both in the bath tub bathing and she left them a moment to go and get something from another room. When she came back into the bathroom both of them weren't breathing. They were both dead, most likely drowned."

Dean raised an eyebrow, his eyes fixed on the picture of Constance as he tapped his pen against the surface of the table.

"Wait, so you're telling me that both kids died within minutes of each other, both of them drowned in the bath tub?" he asked suspiciously. "Does the article say how old they both were?" he demanded, Sam shot him a puzzled look before he leaned towards the screen and quickly skimmed the article for a second time.

"It doesn't say" he replied "Why do you ask?"

"It just seems dodgy Sam; one kid might drown, that I can almost believe but two kids within minutes of each other? Especially if they are older then say three? It just doesn't seem right somehow" he said before he breathed out noisily. "Does the article say anything else in it which might help at all?" he queried.

"Our babies were gone and Constance just couldn't bear it said husband Joseph Welch"

"Makes you wonder where he was the night all of this went down" Dean remarked absently, leaning forward and looking closely at the large picture the article had featured of the grieving husband. "Is it just me Sammy boy of does that bridge in the background look a bit familiar to you?" he asked, lifting his hand and using his pen to point at the picture, his gaze flickering to Sam as the younger man nodded.

"That's the bridge from earlier where they found Troy's car" Sam answered, Dean reached up and rubbed at his face tiredly.

"How much exactly do you want to bet that there is exactly five miles from where those two kids drowned and that bridge" he asked. "At least we know where to head to next, we've got to back there and check it out and maybe we'll see something the police didn't know we have a general idea about what we're looking for and potentially dealing with."

"Well its just gone past three PM now" Sam said, looking down at his watch. "Do you want to go and check it out while we still have some light?" he queried.

"Could do, the sooner we-"

"Daddy!"

Dean glanced down to the side of him, a grin coming to his face when he saw James standing by his chair, reaching his arms up to him with an impatient look on his face. He bent down and picked him up, cuddling James close to his body for a moment. God he couldn't imagine what it would be like, entering a room and seeing James dead and lifeless in it. It was one of his worst nightmares come to life and one which he experienced nightly.

"Hey there little man" Dean commented, tightening his hold on his son. "What are you doing over here? Have you managed to give Mummy the slip or something?" he asked. James leaned back so he could peer into Dean's face, a wide grin on his face as he nodded, looking extremely proud of him self.

"Yes" he responded.

"Poor mummy" Dean said with a sigh as he shook his head at his son, ignoring Sam's gaze, he could just picture the disbelieving look on his brother's face in his mind. "You know James, mummy is probably worried about you, shall you and me and Uncle Sammy go over there and see her and make her happy again?" he asked, tilting his head to the side, a smile coming to his face when James copied the action.

"Yes Daddy" James responded, leaning forward and wrapping his arms and legs tightly around Dean. Dean grunted getting to his feet and adjusting his hold on James, making sure the small boy was comfortable.

"You coming?" he asked Sam when he realised that his brother was still seated at the computer desk doing something on the screen.

"Yeah Dean, I'll meet you over there in a minute or two, I'm just gonna print this article out so we've got a copy to put on the file" he commented, glancing up at Dean who nodded at him.

"Good thinking" he replied before he turned and headed over to the brightly coloured corner of the room where Tansy was still sitting, several open books littered around her. She watched them coming with a soft smile on her face, waiting until they were close before she spoke.

"There you are James" she said. "I see you managed to find Daddy then" James nodded, smiling at them both.

"He was with Unc Sammy" James answered, pointing over Dean's shoulder to where the computer was. Sam had disappeared towards the counter no doubt to retrieve or pay for the print out.

"Good boy" she answered, her gaze rising to meet Dean's. "Any luck with finding something which fits the bill? Were they right?" she asked curiously, a pleased look coming to his face when he nodded.

"Constance Welch, she's a suicide victim from 1981. Looks like she could be the girl we're looking for" he stated. "Sam's just printing out the newspaper article now."

"What happened to her?" Tansy asked. Dean shrugged.

"She decided to take a little dive off of the bridge we saw earlier. We should probably head over there soon and check it out, what do you think?" he asked. Tansy considered his suggestion for a moment before she shook her head.

"You and Sam go and check it out Dean, I'm gonna go to that motel we passed earlier and get us a room for the night. I'm thinking that it will be best if Sam has a room to him self, I'm sure the last thing he wants to do is share with us so I'll leave that to the pair of you to sort out when you get back to the bridge later on. I'll get James fed and bathed and ready for bed tonight and then I'll call the others and see what's been happening while we've been away dealing with this. I'll call Caitlin to let her know we're not finished so she doesn't send us anything. You haven't received anything have you? Have you even checked your phone yet?" she asked.

Dean frowned, moving James so he could reach into his pocket and pulled out a second mobile, flipping it open and scanning the messages he had quickly.

"Nothing major" he answered. "Just a few messages asking where we are and how things are going, you know the usual stuff. Tim wants a call back but that's probably because he wants to brag about his latest hunt and that's a conversation which can wait." He said, flipping the phone down and pushing it back into his pocket before he lowered James to the floor, his gaze fixed on Tansy with a troubled expression. "Should I tell Sam about all of this Tans? You know about the Round Table and everything?" he asked.

Tansy breathed in deeply, searching his eyes for a moment before she sighed, shrugging her shoulder at him before speaking.

"I hate to say it Dean but there's no point if Sam isn't sticking around" she pointed out gently. "He's made it clear from the beginning that once tomorrow has ended then he's out of here whether the hunt is finished or not and I don't think he has much intention of returning to this life,. That's his choice and we can only respect it, however much you might think it sucks."

Dean nodded, sinking onto his knees on the floor.

"Yeah, he just wants to get back to his normal life again" Dean remarked, a bitter tone coming to his voice. "At least we'll be having dinner with them on Monday, that's something. I mean hopefully this time around Sam won't shut us out of his life, not now that he knows James exists anyway."

Tansy scooted forward so she was in front of him and wrapped her arms around his neck, resting her forehead against him as she stared into his trouble eyes.

"Sam would be a complete and utter idiot if he lets either of you go Dean" she stared firmly before she bridged the gap between them and kissed him. Dean's eyes drifted close as he wrapped one arm around her waist, pulling her closer to him while his free hand cradled the back of her hair as he took control of the kiss, all thoughts of Sam and the hunt flying out of his head.

A loud coughing sound came from behind them, distracting them. Dean gently broke the kiss, turning his head so he could glance behind him, his eyes landing on Sam who looked back at him with an awkward expression which Dean found highly amusing.

"I've erm got the article printing out so I'm ready to go whenever you are" he commented. Dean nodded, turning back and kissing Tansy one more time before he forced himself to his feet.

"Yeah let's get out of here; we've a bridge to see."

* * *

Author Note

**Can I just say how much I love writing scenes between Dean and James? I think writing Daddy Dean is one of my all time favourite things to do!**

**Anyway I hope you enjoyed it and I'm hoping to update this over the weekend. Now I know I'm continuing the series I really want to crack on!**

**Thanks for reading **


	13. Chapter 13

Reunion

By

Ava Brett

Disclaimer

**The characters of Sam and Dean Winchester do not belong to me; they belong to the creator of supernatural which you know isn't me.**

**The characters of Tansy and James Winchester however do belong to me so please do not use them without my permission.**

**As usual I am only using the characters for my own entertainment purposes not for anything else**

Author Note

**Here's chapter thirteen!**

**This is the chapter when the brother's finally have it out with each other. The argument has been brewing for a while between them and now its erupted! It's a good thing though, now some of the issues they have with each other are out in the air they can actually begin to work towards mending the problems. It's something which I wish had happened in the series!**

**Anyway please enjoy!**

Overall Summary

**When Sam left for Stanford it never occurred to him that life would go on without him, now his brother is back, needing his help in locating their father but he isn't alone. Sam needs to figure out where he stands now and decide once and for all whether he is a Winchester of not.**

Chapter Summary

**Sometimes a talk is needed whether you want it or not…**

Overall Romances

**Dean Winchester/Tansy Winchester (OFC), Sam Winchester/Jessica Moore and Troy Squire/Amy Hein**

Romance for this chapter

**Dean Winchester / Tansy Winchester (OFC) and Sam Winchester / Jessica Moore**

* * *

Chapter Thirteen

* * *

**1****st**** November 2005**

**17:15 PM**

**Sylvania Bridge**

**Jericho**

**California**

* * *

Sam Winchester's Point of View

* * *

It was already dark by the time Sam and Dean had dropped off Tansy and James at the motel they had decided to stay at for the night, and driven the twenty minutes it took to reach the Sylvania Bridge from the main centre of Jericho.

The whole place looked completely different in the falling darkness.

Troy's abandoned car had been towed away; no doubt to the nearest CSI lab so countless tests could be performed on it to see whether there was something which had been initially missed. The activity from earlier had dispersed, the police and FBI agents no doubt heading back to the station or to get some food to discuss the case and try and piece together a believable theory which could cover all the missing men in the area.

Sam almost pitied them, knowing already that they were all wasting their time. Even if they did happen to stumble across the correct theory that something supernatural was causing all the deaths they still wouldn't have believed it, laughing the theory off as insane.

He was fairly surprised that the sheriff hadn't kept a unit of men behind the secure the area in case any potential suspects they might have had came back to the scene of the crime but he figured that they didn't have the necessary man power to do that.

It was literally as though nothing had happened at the bridge at all.

Dean parked the impala at the end of the bridge and peered through the windscreen with a thoughtful expression on his face, his eyes lingered on the structure of the bridge, remaining on certain areas before he turned away from it, tilting his head to the side so he could look at Sam instead.

"Let's just get this over and done with" he suggested with a crooked smile on his face. "I don't know about you Sammy but I could just about kill for a hot shower with good water pressure and a cup of freshly brewed coffee right about now. We can have a look around here and see whether we see anything which might point to whether this Constance chick is our supernatural girl, and then we'll head back to the motel, get you a motel room and meet back up with Tansy and try and figure out what our next step is."

"Sounds as good a plan as any" Sam agreed.

"Of course it is, I came up with it" Dean replied, flashing a wide grin at Sam before he exited the car, slamming the door closed behind him. Sam rolled his eyes, a slight smile coming to his face as he followed Dean out of the car, shivering in the sudden cold air. He shoved his hands into his pockets and walked to the front of the car, standing next to Dean and looking around the deserted bridge carefully. He had a bad feeling about this suddenly. He nervously licked his lips, glancing behind him to the empty road at the back of them before he glanced at Dean "Let's check it out" Dean remarked quietly, heading away from the car and down the bridge towards the middle where he veered off to the left, peering over the side of the bridge.

Sam followed Dean, coming to a stop beside him and glanced over the side with a nervous look. The sight of the rushing water beneath them was making him feel queasy. Just how desperate must Constance Welch have been to willingly throw her self off of the bridge in the middle of the night? She must have known when she did it that she had little to no chance of surviving the initial fall and yet something had driven her to do it anyway. Sam couldn't understand what that could have been. He wondered briefly whether she had been possessed but there had been nothing in the article they had read which would have supported that theory. According to the neighbours who had seen her that day she had been completely normal if slightly quiet.

He turned his head, watching as Dean leaned forward, one hand lightly gripping the cool metal as his eyes moved rapidly about, Sam wondered briefly what Dean was seeing, his brother had always been scarily observant when it came to both people and crime scenes, often picking up on things which other people didn't. He even picked up on things which Sam him self had missed out on.

"What are you thinking?" Sam asked, breaking the silence between them. Dean breathed out noisily and shrugged.

"I'm thinking that where we are now must have been where Constance took the swan dive from" he remarked casually, his eyes skirting the bridge thoughtfully before they focused on Sam.

"What makes you say that exactly? Why here? Why not further down?" Sam asked curiously. Dean shrugged, taking his hand from his pocket so he could indicate the bridge around them.

"Here or directly opposite are the only two places which would make any sort of sense" Dean stated simply. "Think about it, Constance clearly felt she had nothing to lose, she clearly didn't want to live, maybe she went insane when she discovered her dead kids or maybe she killed them herself and couldn't deal with the guilt of it all. She came down to this bridge with one goal. To die. If she had jumped nearer to the ends of the bridge then she could easily have misjudged the jump or the weather conditions. One strong gust of wind and she would have hit that bank hard. It would have fucking hurt like hell and she would probably have broken near enough every bone in her body but there's enough plant life down there that her fall would have been cushioned enough. She would have survived and she would have had to confront her husband and deal with the consequences of what she might have done. Someone who walks five miles isn't going to screw up at the last hurdle. The only way she could have been definitely sure that she would die is to jump from the middle. There would be no bank to save her regardless of the wind. She would die for certain, if the impact of the fall didn't kill her then the drowning definitely would have."

Sam laughed, shaking his head in disbelief.

"You sound like a flipping episode of CSI or something Dean, you been watching them in your spare time again, taking notes?" he commented with a laugh.

"Hey, I'll have you know Sammy that I'm much more then just a pretty face, don't tell me you actually thought that you were the only Winchester with a brain in their head?" Dean asked lightly, looking amused by Sam's comment. Sam shrugged

"You never showed it when you were younger" Sam pointed out. "You acted as though you were dumb" Dean snorted.

"Did I?" he replied "Or did I just not bother to show you and Dad what went on inside my head because you both had already made your minds up?" he asked. Sam stared at him for a moment before he sighed and changed the subject. One day he and Dean were going to have to sit down just the two of them and have a seriously long chat about everything which had happened during their four years apart. Sam was getting the feeling that there was more to his brother's story other then getting married and having a child.

"So do you think that Dad would have made it this far before he disappeared to wherever it is he's gone to?" he asked, looking over at Dean. "I just don't get how he could skip out in the middle of a job after everything he said to us about it all. This boy Troy is dead because Dad didn't close the deal on this hunt. He should be alive right now, you should be at home and I should be at Stanford." Dean frowned at his words, quickly glancing over at him before he spoke.

"We've got to assume that he did" Dean replied. "I mean think about it Sam, we've only been in this town for what five hours or so and we've already gotten far enough to know what we're after or at least to have a pretty damn good idea about it. Dad was here for three days as far as we know. He would have known exactly what he was after and how to dispose of the thing. Something happened to him here which sent him running, whether it was something he saw or a call he received I don't know but it must have been pretty damn important for him to do this."

"What though?" Sam demanded.

"I don't know Sam. You never know though maybe the Winchester luck will change and we'll catch a lucky break for once. I'm with you though; I don't get what the hell he was thinking"

Sam shot Dean a quick glance, his eyebrow rising when he realised that Dean had come close to criticising their father's actions in front of him. Normally Dean would have been making excuses for him but perhaps the time for that had passed.

Dean pushed him self away from the side and began walking towards the end of the bridge, moving his head side to side clearly searching for something to indicate what exactly Constance Welch had become after her death. Was she a spirit or was she something more then that? Hell they weren't even sure whether she was the person who they were looking for yet. There was always a chance, however unlikely it was that Constance's suicide merely coincided with the first missing man and wasn't in fact related to it at all.

"You coming Sam?" Dean called back over his shoulder. Sam stared after his brother for a moment still finding it hard to believe in his mind that the calm individual who was walking away from him was still the same hot tempered, act first and think later, older brother who Sam had grown up idolising and trying to copy. There was still a great deal of the old Dean in Sam as far as he could see but he certainly wasn't the same. This new Dean was someone who Sam could see him self respecting and actually building a healthy relationship with.

He pushed the thought away from his head and hurried down the bridge after his brother.

"Okay so what exactly are we planning to do now then?" Sam asked curiously. "I think we both agree that Dad isn't in Jericho anymore otherwise we would have ran into him by now so it's clearly not gonna be as simple as we had hoped it was gonna be." Dean shrugged, looking back at Sam with a smile.

"Understatement of the year right there Sammy" he teased lightly before he sighed. "It's pretty simple. We're gonna have to keep digging until we find out exactly where Dad has gone to. There's ways of finding out if you have the right connections. We just aren't gonna find him as quickly as we thought we would but you know if he is out there then we'll find him. He can't hide forever."

Sam stopped dead in his tracks, staring at Dean's back as his brother continued to walk towards the end of the bridge with a growing sense of dread in the pit of his stomach. The same feeling he always got when he realised that he and Dean were about to argue with each other. He took a deep breath and spoke.

"Dean" he stated loudly. "I told you before I even agreed to this whole rescue mission thing that I had to be back in Stanford for Monday morning, you agreed to it" he said. Dean stopped and turned round to face him, a look of puzzlement on his face as he took a few steps forward towards Sam, his eyes searching Sam's in the growing darkness.

"Yeah I know Sam, you've got to be back for the big law scholarship interview bright and early Monday morning" he replied slowly, an undercurrent of confusion to his voice as he raised a questioning eyebrow at Sam.

"Exactly so I can't stay on with you to look for Dad. I'm sorry and everything but that's the way things are now. I'm going to do this interview. I told you-"

"Sam I know" Dean interrupted with a roll of his eyes. "Trust me when I say I haven't forgotten about it all. I told you I would have you back on Monday morning by nine and I will have you back on Monday morning by nine. I don't break my promises; you should know that by now."

"Yeah but you said we-"

"I was talking about me and Tansy Sam" Dean said, looking at Sam with a half amused, half pitying look. "That was the we I was talking about, not the you and me we. We shall drop you back at Stanford like I said and then we'll stick around for dinner like we promised Jess because you know it clearly means a lot to her and then we'll come back here and search for clues for Dad before we head home."

"Oh" Sam said, feeling suddenly deflated. Dean breathed out noisily, raising his eyes to the sky as he took a few more steps forward so he was in front of Sam.

"Look I get it ok, I know how much getting this scholarship and acing the interview means to you Sam. I get it that you have this whole big plan in your head about how you want your life to be now. You want to be a lawyer and earn money. You want to marry Jess and probably eventually be a father. You want the whole white picket fenced house and the normal lifestyle you've always wanted. I mean that is your plan isn't it?" he asked "I'll be the first to admit that I can be a bastard at times Sam, but I'm not that big a bastard that I would sabotage this for you. If you want it then you go for it, end of" he said simply..

"There's nothing wrong with wanting it" Sam responded, feeling off balanced by the whole conversation. Every time he spoke to his brother now it left him feeling confused. Dean would simply respond in a way that Sam never expected him to. The old Dean would have blasted Sam for wanting a normal life, not encourage him to go and get it. "I mean why shouldn't I want that? It's what you did isn't it? You settled down the minute I was out of the picture at University, how do you think that makes me feel? I feel like I was the only thing holding you back from this perfect life you wanted. The minute I was gone you married a woman who you tell me was your apparent childhood sweetheart, a childhood sweetheart I knew nothing about even though I was with you all the time. Then you go and have a child with her and you build a life with her which doesn't include me a great deal. I mean hell Dean, you even own a house, it's not even a house is it? It's your home. That's what you call it. You said we'll head home. Home used to be where me and Dad were to you and now it's a building. You have a job which pays you, you probably have friends and neighbours and a place you're settled at. If you can have a life like that then why can't I?" Sam asked, his words rushing together in his haste to get them out.

There was a long silence.

"Sam" Dean said softly. "Has it ever occurred to you that not everything is about you?" he asked, holding his hand up when Sam when to interrupt. "No you've had your say, now I think its time you listen to me since you've clearly got to get all this bullshit out of your system. It was your choice to leave to go to University, a choice you made completely by your self because you clearly didn't trust me enough to discuss it with me. What did you think I would do? Tell Dad about your plans? You left that day, you made the choice to cut all contact with us, you not me."

"That was because-"

"I'm sure you have several reasons Sam, reasons which make sense to you, perhaps some of them would even make sense to me but what it comes down to is that you left and you're pissed off that life went on without you. What did you think would happen? We would sit around and wait for you to return to us eventually. That's not the way real life works Sam. It doesn't stop because one person wants it to. I never wanted you to leave the way you did but I would never have stood in your way. If you had told me you wanted to go then I would have told you to get on with it and stop bitching around, but you never even gave me that opportunity, and then you stopped taking my calls and that's when I realised that if you were getting on with your life then it was about time I did as well."

"I never-"

"Never what Sam?" Dean demanded "Expected this to happen? Wanted it to happen? Neither of those things matter anymore because it did happen. You seem to believe that I'm holding onto all this residual anger towards you but I don't, if anything I'm thankful because if you hadn't of gone to University then I wouldn't have met up with Tansy and realised she's the one, the same way that she had always been the one for me."

"Dean-"

"I am not Dad Sam and you need to remember that, I have not once ridiculed you for your plan or told you not to do it so enough ok, just enough of the snide comments and the bitterness and everything else. I'm your brother and that's it as far as I'm concerned, I'm here if you need me end of but I'm tired of listening to you whine about a decision which you made. Its time to accept it Sam and move the hell on."

"I didn't mean it like that Dean" Sam said, "I know it was my decision and that yeah I handled things badly with you and Dad, especially with you. It's just-" his voice trailed off for a moment.

"Just what?" Dean asked curiously.

"Just that I didn't expect things to change so much between us, you're different and I didn't expect it" Dean laughed.

"It's called being a husband and a father Sam; I didn't have any choice but to grow up." He licked his lips before speaking again. "There is one thing which I am curious about Sam."

"What's that?" Sam asked hesitantly. Dean paused for a moment before he began speaking.

"Are you actually being trueful and I don't just mean to Jess but to yourself as well. I mean come on Sammy, look how easy it's been for you to settle back into the routine of Hunting, you didn't even falter even though it's been four years since you last did this. I'm not trying to tell you have to do your things in your life but it seems to me that you're never gonna be happy if you don't accept the fact that a part of you is a Hunter, there's no off switch to it, trust me on that one. You can distance your self from the life and the people in it all you want but it's always gonna be in you ready to rear up and decapitate some supernatural bitches." He said. "I mean have you actually told Jess the truth about us both? About who we are and what we've done in our childhood? Or does Jess really believe that you're just some normal dude from somewhere with a dysfunctional family who rarely talk about? Because we aren't normal, we never have been and we never will be. It seems that it's the Winchester curse."

Sam took a step towards Dean so that there was little gap between them, his hand curling into a fist at his side as he stared angrily into his brother's serious face.

"I haven't told her a damn thing about any of it and you know what Dean I'm not gonna either. Jess doesn't need to know the things that we've done or who we are or what you and your wife still do." Dean raised an eyebrow with a look of disbelief on his face.

"Well that sounds a nice and healthy way to have a relationship with someone Sam. Dude you can't base an entire relationship on a pack of lies because you know what, the more you lie and hide things the more likely they are to come out and then what will you do. There's a chance that Jess would merely shrug her shoulders if she found out about the supernatural but even I can tell that being lied to is a complete deal breaker for her. She finds out you've laid and you'll lose the best thing that happened to you Sam. You can stand there and bring up me and Tansy and how we've made it work and you can bitch about how if I've managed to have it then you should as well but you can't compare the two situations at all and you'll be an idiot if you try to and you aren't an idiot, a fucking annoying know it all little brother yes, but certainly not an idiot."

"And what makes you so different from me then?" Sam demanded sullenly.

"Because I took the high road for once. I have never once lied about who I am and what I've done in my past to my wife. I took advice from someone I cared about and realised that the only way to make it work with Tansy was to tell her to truth about everything, I was lucky that she was a Hunter her self but trust me when I say she was still horrified about some of the things we've done. There's not one thing about me that Tansy doesn't know. She knows the good stuff, the bad stuff and the stuff which should have sent her running but she still chose to remain with me and to marry me regardless of it all. She still believed and respected me enough to have our child. If you ask Jess to marry you when she doesn't know a damn thing about what's out there, what could be hunting her because of her connection to you and who the hell you truly are, then that's just wrong. You know that, I know you do or you would have asked her to marry you already and if you don't think that it's wrong then-"Dean's voice trailed off as he shook his head again.

"Then what?" Sam demanded when the silence between them threatened to continue, Dean shrugged looking up from the ground to meet his eyes.

"Then I didn't help raise you as well as I thought I had" he answered quietly, searching Sam's eyes for a moment before he turned and began walking back down the bridge, his voice carrying back to Sam on the cold still air as he continued to speak. "You can pretend all you want Sammy that you are normal but one day, for whatever reason you'll have to face up to who you really are deep down beneath all the layers of bullshit you've got going on at the moment."

"And who is that exactly Dean? Go on; tell me since you seem to know so much about me. Who exactly am I?"

"You're always going to be one of us Sam" Dean responded with a sigh, not bothering to look back at Sam. "You're a trained hunter of the supernatural, it doesn't really matter whether you want to be or not or whether you build a new life for yourself. That is what you're always going to be when push comes to shove."

"No" Sam said, coming to life. He hurried after Dean, passing him and stopping in front of him, blocking his path so the older man had no choice but to stop walking as well. "You're right about most things you've said, I'll give you that but you're wrong about this Dean. I'm not like you. I'm not going to stand back and allowing Hunting to take over my life and ruin it the same way it has ruined nearly every other Hunter's life. I'm better then this life style. I can be more then a Hunter."

"Perhaps you are better then this Sam" Dean responded quietly, running a hand through his hair. "Perhaps I'm better then this life style but what everything comes down to Sam is the simple fact that both of have a responsibility-"

"A responsibility to who Dean?" Sam demanded, mirroring his brother's action as he dragged his own hand through his hair. "A responsibility to Dad? Come on Dean; let's put it into perspective since we're having this heart to heart with each other. Dad is the man who happily abandoned us countless of times during our childhood so he could go off and Hunt yet another supernatural creature. Our father is the man who left his young son solely responsible for his other son. When are you gonna realise Dean that Dad robbed you of your childhood, he made you grow up too quickly, he made you sacrifice things that no child should have to sacrifice, and you still somehow feel as though you owe him something when the truth is that neither of us owe him anything, not when you actually think back to everything we went through in the name of his crusade. If he had actually been a decent father to us then we would have left us behind at Bobby Singer's place when he decided he had to hunt. We could have had a life there, a happy and stable one. We could have had real friends and a real chance at dating. We could have had some normal sort of life. We could have stayed in one place continuously and gone to one school and actually gained a proper education. I don't for one moment believe that you were any happier then I was growing up when it came to having to constantly move around and join a brand new school every month or so. I mean hell Dean is there one state in America left where we haven't gone to school in?

"Sam-" Dean said lowly, a warning tone coming to his voice which Sam ignored as he carried on speaking, the words erupting from his mouth as though a barrier had gone down in his brain.

"Do we have a responsibility towards Mum? Hell Dean if it wasn't for pictures I wouldn't even know what she looked like, if it hadn't have been for you telling me stories about her when I was younger then I would never have known what she was like because Dad never spoke about her. Every time we mentioned her he would grab a bottle of drink and down it. Beside you were what four when she died? How reliable are your actual memories of her anyway? What damn difference is it going to make if and when we finally get the thing which killed her? Do you think Dad is suddenly going to stop drinking and revert to a normal decent human being? Mum is gone Dean, she died and its about time that you face up to the fact that it doesn't matter what you do, she is never coming back to us."

Sam didn't have time to react as Dean leapt forward, grabbing him by his zipped top and slamming him hard against the metal support structure causing the air to erupt from his lungs in a gasp. Dean's hands gripped the material tightly as he glared into Sam's eyes, anger and disappointment burning in the green orbs. There was a heavy tense silence before Dean spoke, his voice quiet and deadly in a way which sent a shiver down Sam's spine.

"Don't ever talk about her that way again Sam."

Sam slumped back as Dean let go of him as though he couldn't bear to touch him and turned away from him, shoving his hands into his jacket pocket and walking away. The conversation clearly finished in his mind.

Sam reached up and a ran a hand over his mouth, cursing him self inside as he realised he had gone too far and managed to fuck things up with Dean once again just when they were beginning to get back on track. He just didn't understand it; it used to be so easy for him to talk to Dean about anything. He used to be able to tell from a single glance how Dean would react to something. Now however Sam felt as though he was constantly putting his foot in it. Tansy's words about getting to know the new Dean came back to haunt him making him wonder for the first time whether she was actually right. Did he actually know anything about the new Dean? Clearly treating him the same way he had treated him before wasn't going to work anymore. He would have to actually take his sister in laws advice and get to know the new Dean. Four years had been an incredibly long gap, a gap he would have to try and bridge.

"Sam? You might wanna take a look at this" Dean called out, the anger gone from his voice. Sam glanced up at him, turning to follow his brother's gaze. Constance Welch was standing on the metal railings just ahead of them, in the exact spot Dean said she would have jumped from, her body and face turned towards them clearly watching them. Sam came to Dean's side, the argument forgotten from his mind as he watched Constance look away from them and throw her self from the bridge towards the raging waters beneath them.

Sam made a sound of shock, breaking into a sprint, his heart pounding in his chest as he peered over the side of the bridge. She was gone.

"Where the hell did she go?" Dean demanded, skidding to a stop beside him and looking into the river, his eyes searching for any sign that she might still be in the water.

"I don't know" Sam responded.

He frowned, straightening his body into a standing position when he heard the familiar sound of the impala's engine purring in the silent air. He glanced at Dean with a questioning look which his brother ignored, instead turning to stare at his car, his eyes squinting in the bright beams from the head lights.

"What the-"Dean said, his voice trailing off in disbelief.

"Dude who exactly is driving your car? Did you leave the keys in the ignition or something?" Sam demanded. Dean shook his head slowly, reaching into his pocket and pulling out the keys, jangling them in front of Sam's face. Sam stared at them, eyes wide before he looked back towards the possessed car just as it jerked forward, coming to life and heading straight for them. "Dean? Fuck go, go, go" Sam yelled, turning and running in the opposite direction from the car aware of Dean running beside him, swearing under his breath about what he was going to do to the Bitch who had his car.

Sam risked a quick look back and swore; the car had picked up speed and clearly had no intention of stopping until it had mowed them down. He veered to the left, reaching the barrier and threw his body over the edge, hand reaching out and grabbing the railing, nearly dislocating his shoulder.

Biting down on his lip, he grunted in pain, slowly pulling him self back up. The impala was on the other side of the railings, still and silent and clearly not possessed anymore. Sam breathed out and glanced around him, his eyes widening when he realised his brother was no where in sight.

Sam's gaze fell to the water and his breath caught in his throat.

"Dean? DEAN!"

* * *

Author Note

**Writing that argument has seriously taken it out of me! Still it all needed to be said, as I said before now its out in the open they can both begin to deal with it.**

**Thanks for reading **


	14. Chapter 14

Reunion

By

Ava Brett

Disclaimer

**The characters of Sam and Dean Winchester do not belong to me; they belong to the creator of supernatural which you know isn't me.**

**The characters of Tansy and James Winchester however do belong to me so please do not use them without my permission.**

**As usual I am only using the characters for my own entertainment purposes not for anything else**

Author Note

**So here's chapter fourteen all done and dusted for you!**

**I had loads of chapter prewritten but I've used them all now so now I'm back to square one! I think I can kiss my evening goodbye now **

**Still its worth it because I love this story. Its definitely my favourite followed closely by Witch Hunt!**

**Hopefully you'll enjoy it **

Overall Summary

**When Sam left for Stanford it never occurred to him that life would go on without him, now his brother is back, needing his help in locating their father but he isn't alone. Sam needs to figure out where he stands now and decide once and for all whether he is a Winchester of not.**

Chapter Summary

**A Discovery is made…**

Overall Romances

**Dean Winchester/Tansy Winchester (OFC), Sam Winchester/Jessica Moore and Troy Squire/Amy Hein**

Romance for this chapter

**Mentions of Dean Winchester / Tansy Winchester (OFC)**

* * *

Chapter Fourteen

* * *

**1****st**** November 2005**

**17:35 PM**

**Sylvania Bridge**

**Jericho**

**California**

* * *

Dean Winchester's point of view

* * *

The water was freezing cold; weighing him down from the moment his body connected with it, dragging him beneath the surface so the current could batter at him. The effect left him dizzy and disoriented as he struggled desperate to gather his bearings enough to calm him self before his panic made him do something stupid, like release the air he had managed to breath into his lungs when he had realised he was falling directly into the fast moving river below.

The sound of roaring grew in his ears as he flipped him self around, cursing in his mind that he had chosen to wear his leather jacket due to the weather turning colder, he should have kept his lighter jacket on, at least it wouldn't have been such a dead weight on him. A glimmer caught his attention and he glanced up, peering through the darkness surrounding him to see a small round orb of light in the distance. The moon, if the moon was there then that meant the surface and fresh air were in that direction as well.

The currents were strong whipping his body about but Dean had always been a strong swimmer when he was growing up, having his first swimming lesson when he was three and proving him self to be a natural at it. He had always been able to hold his breath longer under water then either Sam or his dad had ever managed to do, a talent he was suddenly extremely thankful he had.

His foot brushed against the bottom of the river bed, he closed his eyes briefly in relief, pressing his boot against it and hunching his body down, using the soft, muddy ground to push against and propel him self towards the surface, swimming against the currents until he emerged into the cold night air, sputtering and gasping for breath as he looked around him. He coughed, spitting out the dirty water from his mouth before he reached a shaky hand to his face and dragged it down it, clearing mud and water from his eyes and clearing his vision. He glanced around him, his eyes landing on the bank to the side of him, breathing a silent sigh of relief he kicked off towards it, shooting through the water like a fish.

"Dean? Dean! Damn it answer me Dean, Dean? Are you down there?" He could heat Sam's voice over the roaring of the water, each syllable sounding more panicky then the previous one. If he wasn't careful then Sam would end up diving in after him meaning that Dean would have to enter the water to save him. Entering the river once was enough there was no way in hell he was going back in there again.

"What? Can't you see I'm a little busy here Sammy!" he yelled back, clawing at the mud as he scrambled onto the bank, collapsing against it. He was exhausted from his struggle. He tilted his head back slightly, glancing towards the top of the bridge, his eyes immediately focusing on his brother. Sam was clinging to the main metal frame which supported the bridge, he was clearly holding on for dear life as he leaned over, his eyes fixed on Dean where he lay on the bank, recovering.

"Thank God" Sam called down to him, concern in his voice. "Are you alright down there?" he demanded. Dean resisted rolling his eyes with difficulty at his brother's question. Shaking his head he rolled over onto his back, resting his head against the squishy mud, staring up at the dark sky above him, his eyes lingering on the full moon with a fond look. He definitely owed the moon one. "Dean? Are you still conscious down there?" Sam called again.

Dean breathed out noisily, forcing his protesting body to move. He lifted his arm up and made an A-OK sign with his hand so his brother could see it before he spoke.

"Oh yeah I'm super Sam, this is all in a days work remember."

He smiled slightly when he heard the sound of Sam's relieved laughter echo down to him on the still air before his brother moved, pulling him self up using the pole and climbing over the barrier to safety. Dean knew he should make a move as well but he couldn't bring him self to do it. His limbs felt heavy as though they were made of stone, he was cold, he was exhausted and all he could think about was the fact that Tansy was going to have his hide for doing something as reckless as jumping over the edge of a bridge without having a back up plan. He could already picture the horrified expression on her face when he arrived back at their hotel room, covered in wet mud and smelling like shit. The minute she found out he had been caught under water in a current stream she would probably freak out. Grabbing him and kissing the life out of him before she smacked him round the back of the head for being stupid and kicking him towards the bathroom for a shower, telling him to stay there until he was sure that every last bit of dirt was gone.

"Are you coming Dean or are you planning on staying down there forever?" Sam shouted down to him, his head appearing over the side of the bridge again. "Are you injured or something? Do you need me to come down there and give you a hand Dean because the way down isn't that steep from what I can see" Sam offered, the concern back in his voice as he glanced off to the side of him, probably looking at the way down.

"I'm fine Sam" Dean yelled back "You stay up there with the car in case that Bitch tried to use baby against us again. I love my car but I don't want to be squished by her."

"Ok then, if you're sure" Sam yelled back, disappearing from view again.

Dean grunted, rolling onto his front and using the rocks and grass to pull him self to his feet. He was shivering in the cold wind but he ignored it, stumbling over the uneven ground to the bank which Sam must have been talking about. Stopping at the bottom, he glanced up at it and snorted out loud.

Not steep his ass. The thing was almost vertical.

Shaking his head, Dean rolled his shoulders back, loosening the tense muscles before he stepped back several paces so he was almost back at the river. He took in a deep breath, his eyes narrowing in concentration and took a run at it, leaping at it and scrambling up using his own momentum to get him half way. He fell forward at that point, cursing as he clutched at the ground to halt his fall, he pulled him self, wincing when the sharp stone cut into the skin of his palm and cursing Constance Welch for everything he was worth.

"Give me your hand Dean" Dean glanced up at the voice, surprised to see that Sam was standing just slightly above him, hunched down with his hand out stretched towards him, the other hand wrapped around a tree branch for balance. "Don't just stare at me Dean, give me your hand unless you want to try it again from the bottom because that's where you're about to end up from the look of it." Sam remarked firmly. Dean searched his face for a moment before he shrugged his shoulder, bracing him self and making a leap forward, gripping Sam's hand tightly the moment it made contact with his. Sam grunted at the suddenly extra weight on him, grimacing from the effort as he slowly stood up, pulling Dean up with him and towards the top of the bank. Dean scrambled up the rest of the way until he was safe on the side of the road, he rested there for a moment, down on his hands and knees as he breathed in deeply before he forced him self to his feet. He was aware of Sam watching him carefully, probably trying to see whether Dean had been lying to him about being hurt but he ignored him.

He had far more important things to worry about at that second, like what state his car was going to be in? If Constance Welch had scratched or damaged his baby in any way then he was going to make sure that she paid for it dearly. He wasn't sure exactly how he would make a spirit pay but he wouldn't rest until he had found a way.

"Thanks Sam" Dean muttered, heading onto the bridge and jogging towards his car which was park haphazardly near to the barrier, he started circling around it as soon as he reached it. The impala looked okay at first glance, her paintwork was still as good as ever and Dean couldn't make out any damage to the metal work. He ran his hand over the roof before he headed to the front of the car and opened the hood up, glancing down at the engine carefully. Definitely no damage to it which was a relief considering how difficult it was to get an engine for his car these days.

"Everything ok with the car? No damage or anything? We're not, you know stranded out here?" Sam asked as he joined him at the car. Dean slammed the hood down, eyes skirting the car one final time before he shook his head and spoke.

"Yeah whatever she did to the car it seems to be alright now" he stated, his eyes narrowing "That Constance chick was a complete and utter _bitch" _he shouted, not caring that she probably couldn't hear him. He leaned back against the hood of the car, breathing out softly as he closed his eyes for a moment. If he had wanted a shower before hand then it was nothing to how badly he wanted one now. He opened his eyes, tilting his head towards Sam curiously. The other boy was staring down to the end of the bridge, hands jammed into his pockets with a thoughtful expression on his face.

"That's something then" Sam remarked. "It's pretty damn clear that she doesn't want us digging around down here that's for sure which can only mean that we're on the right track. Constance Welch is the person we're after" he commented, Dean bit down on his lower lip and nodded in agreement, watching as Sam settled down next to him, glancing at Dean from the corner of his eyes "So any bright ideas on where the job goes from here now genius?" he asked.

Dean swallowed, throwing his hand up in the air and smacking them down against his thighs. He wrinkled his nose up and breathed out, flicking his hands out to clear the mud from them with a sound of disgust.

"We'll figure something out" Dean remarked with a sigh. Sam remained silent for a moment before he turned to him, his nose wrinkling up in disgust.

"You know you smell like you've been bathing in a toilet" he remarked casually.

"Thanks for that Captain Obvious" Dean retorted, shaking his head as he forced him self to his feet, turning to look at Sam who was watching him with a smile. "Look we're clearly not going to find anything more out here tonight especially since we found what we needed. Constance is the one who is killing or taking these men from their cars. We just need to figure out why? Once we've figured that out then we find where she was buried and we burn the bitch's remains, ending her once and for all. Hell you never know Sammy we might be done here by tomorrow evening if we're lucky" he said, leaning over and rubbing his hand over the hood of his car when he noticed the mud which must have transferred from his clothes. He was definitely going to have to clean his baby before they left this town, there was no way in hell he was going to drive her about when she wasn't pristine and looking at her best.

"When have we ever been lucky?" Sam asked with a raised eyebrow. Dean ignored him, heading to the driver's side and putting the key into the lock, turning it and opening the door. He looked down at the seat for a moment before he headed to the back of the car, opening the trunk up; he searched through it, grinning when he pulled out the blanket which they kept in the trunk for James. He headed back to his side and lent into the car, spreading the blanket over his seat so it was covered before he slid in and slammed the door shut behind him. He glanced to the side to see Sam giving him a disbelieving look.

"What?" he demanded. Sam shook his head, leaning over and pinching the soft blanket in-between his thumb and forefinger

"Really Dean?" he stated raising an eyebrow at him before he slammed his own door close.

"Don't you look at me like that" Dean said, jabbing his finger towards Sam. "There is no way in hell that I'm getting mud over my baby's leatherwork. Have you any idea how long it would take me to clean it off from it?" he demanded.

"No of course not Dean" Sam agreed "You're just getting it over the blanket which belongs to your actual baby instead. Isn't that James's blanket? Remember him, cute little kid with big blue eyes?" he queried. Dean glanced away from Sam's face to look at the pale blue blanket he was sitting on and shrugged, ignoring the feeling of guilt which bloomed in his stomach. The blanket was one of James's favourite possessions.

"Look its not like he's gonna notice its gone Sammy. He's two years old besides I'm not gonna leave it this way. I'll put it in the wash when we get home and it will be completely brand new again, Jago won't notice the difference"

"You hope he doesn't realise" Sam countered. "I'd be more worried about Tansy finding out about it if I was you, somehow I think if she found out she would kick your ass" Dean froze at his brother's words before he winced, carefully hiding it from Sam's watchful eyes.

"Tans will understand it's only for a day or two anyway" Dean said after a pause. Sam nodded, his expression making it clear that he didn't believe a word of what Dean was saying.

"You're the one who knows her best" Sam remarked.

There was a silence before Dean shook the thought off and stuck the key into the ignition turning it on. He listened carefully to the engine for a moment, trying to pick up anything which might have sounded slightly off but there was nothing. The car sounded just as good as it had done before it became possessed.

"Remind me to give the car a tune up on Monday after we've dropped you off. I can do it during the afternoon before we head off to dinner" he remarked, Sam glanced towards him, a relieved look in his eyes though he merely shrugged

"Yeah maybe if I remember to" Sam answered.

Dean rolled his eyes and hit the accelerator heading off of the bridge and back onto the main road which would take them towards Jericho and the motel they were staying at for the evening. They had been driving for about ten minutes when Sam reached out and unwound his window, sticking his face towards it and sucking in some loud pointed breathes, fanning the cold air towards Dean with his hands.

"Bite me Bitch." Dean remarked, rolling his eyes as he gripped the steering wheel tightly, ignoring the sound of Sam's laughter. He turned to him. "Now you know exactly how I used to feel when you would get gassy on me. I don't remember you making such a massive deal about it then and trust me when I say that you smelt worst then I do now"

"Whatever" Sam scoffed "At least I didn't smell like shit" he pointed out.

"No you merely smelt as though something had crawled up your ass and died there, most likely over come by the fumes you produce on a regular basis." Dean retorted, grinning when Sam stuck up his middle finger at him before he spoke. "First thing we'll do when we get to the motel is get you your room" he remarked, glancing towards Sam with a raised eyebrow when Sam made a surprised noise.

"I'm getting my own room? I'd assumed we would end up sharing or something?" Sam remarked. Dean shook his head.

"No room Sammy" he pointed out. "James will have the second bed in our room to sleep in and I highly doubt you'd want to climb into bed with me and Tansy mainly because that would be creepy as hell so unless you want the floor then its your own room, isn't that what you want?" he asked in confusion, glancing quickly at Sam before he turned his attention back to the road.

"Definitely" he answered feelingly "I was going to suggest it to you anyway'"

"Awesome, that's settled then" Dean remarked "I'll pay for your room on my credit card, I don't want there to be anything here which can tie you to this place if things go sour, not with your big law interview coming up anyway" he remarked, licking his lips, he immediately gagged on the taste of mud which entered his mouth. "And I am seriously going to use your shower as well as soon as we get there. Tansy would have my hide if I go to our room like this" he commented, shaking his head and smiling when Sam laughed again.

"I'd pay to see her kick your ass" Sam remarked. Dean snorted.

"Never gonna happen Sammy" Dean answered, hitting the indicator and pulling onto the car park of the motel they were staying at. He parked up and exited the car, turning back and lifting James's blanket off of the seat. He gently folded it up, holding it lightly in his hand before he glanced up to see Sam watching him with a strange expression on his face. "What is it?" he demanded curiously.

"It's nothing Dean, just ignore me, it's been a long day already" Sam answered, slamming his door shut and looking towards the reception area. Dean watched him for a moment before he shrugged.

"Let's go then, I can hear that shower calling to me now" he commented, leading the air towards the reception. He pulled his wallet from his jacket pocket, saying a silent prayer of thanks that he hadn't put it in his pocket like back on the bridge.

He yanked open the door, holding it open for Sam who automatically thanked him before Dean stepped forward, stopping in front of the old man at the counter and throwing his fake credit card down on the guest list book which the man had open in front of him. Dean glanced down, skimming the list, his eyes dropping on the reservation which Tansy had made, noticing that she had used her middle name and maiden name again, the same way she always did when she booked their room. He tilted his head slightly, reading the room number so he would know which room to go to.

He glanced up and spoke, meeting the old man's pale blue eyes.

"One room please"

The old man searched his face for a moment, his eyes dropping to take in the state of Dean's clothes before he shrugged, leaning forward and picking up the credit card from the book. He glanced down at it, reading the name before he looked back up at Dean with a questioning frown on his face.

"So are you guys having a reunion with each other or something?" he asked curiously as he began filling in the details from the card into the book.

"What do you mean exactly? What reunion?" Sam asked from behind Dean, Dean waited for the older man to answer. The old man remained quiet for a moment finishing his task before he looked back up at them both.

"Well I have that other guy Burt Aframian staying here as well, he came in a week or so ago and brought out one of my rooms for the entire month. I assume when I saw the surname that you're related, I mean it's not exactly a common name is it" the man pointed out.

Dean's eyes widened as he turned back to meet Sam's surprise gaze.

Their Dad had been there

* * *

Author Note

**Thanks for reading!**


	15. Chapter 15

Reunion

By

Ava Brett

Disclaimer

**The characters of Sam and Dean Winchester do not belong to me; they belong to the creator of supernatural which you know isn't me.**

**The characters of Tansy and James Winchester however do belong to me so please do not use them without my permission.**

**As usual I am only using the characters for my own entertainment purposes not for anything else**

Author Note

**So here's the next chapter!**

**The good news is that this story is completely finished. I've written all the other chapters, all that I need to do is polish them up and edit them before I can post them so yay! I can actually guarantee, hand over heart that this story will most definitely be completed and fairly soon at that.**

**I've had to make a change to the time line though, I noticed that when Sam and Dean are on the bridge its night time and then suddenly its day time when they are at the motel which makes no sense what so ever to me! So in this chapter its still night time. TV might be able to get away with mess ups like that but I don't think I have quite the same lee way when it comes to this story. Sam and Dean can't go missing for twelve hours lol!**

**I just wanna say how much I love writing a Dean who isn't hiding his intelligence for once!**

**You'll be pleased to know if you're a fan of this story that I've written the first chapter of the next story in this saga so make sure you look out for it once this one is completed!**

**Anyway I really hope you enjoy this chapter.**

Overall Summary

**When Sam left for Stanford it never occurred to him that life would go on without him, now his brother is back, needing his help in locating their father but he isn't alone. Sam needs to figure out where he stands now and decide once and for all whether he is a Winchester of not.**

Chapter Summary

**In room ten all sort of things are revealed…**

Overall Romances

**Dean Winchester/Tansy Winchester (OFC), Sam Winchester/Jessica Moore and Troy Squire/Amy Hein**

Romance for this chapter

**Mentions of Dean Winchester / Tansy Winchester (OFC) and Sam Winchester/Jessica Moore**

* * *

Chapter Fifteen

* * *

**1****st**** November 2005**

**18:00 PM**

**Room Ten**

**Blue Tiger Motel**

**Jericho**

**California**

* * *

Sam Winchester's point of view

* * *

"Here catch Sam" Dean remarked, taking the room key from the owner and throwing it back over his shoulder in Sam's general direction. Sam blinked, catching the key in one hand and glanced down at it, his nose wrinkling up when he realised that the man had put him in room thirteen.

Just his luck.

He looked back up from it, his gaze lingering on Dean's back for a moment as his brother finished up the room arrangements with the owner, before they moved past his brother to focus on the old man who was watching them both with a careful expression as though he expected them to reach over the counter and slaughter him where he stood. Sam forced a pleasant smile on his face before he turned and left the reception area. Standing and breathing in the cold air as he looked around him cautiously to see whether there was anything out of the ordinary hidden in the dark shadows.

As far as he could tell though things looked completely normal though, nothing was out there watching them.

"Move out of the way Sam." Dean remarked from behind him, placing his hand on Sam's shoulder and lightly moving him out of the way so he could slip past him, clambering noisily down the wooden stairs. Sam watched as Dean stopped, staring ahead of him for a moment before he turned to look back at Sam, a determined look on his face which always meant that his brother had some plan of some kind.

"We need to get in Dad's room and check out what he was doing in there" Dean remarked softly, his voice barely audible in the quiet. Sam nodded, watching when Dean suddenly placed a fake smile on his face and raised his hand, giving a wave in the direction of the reception. No doubt the man was watching them wondering why they were lingering out in the cold. Dean looked back at Sam and made a movement with his head, turning and walking away from the reception area. Sam glanced back once before he followed, catching up quickly to Dean. "I had a look at the guest book when I was signing you in; the man had put Dad in room ten which should be just over here somewhere. We could pick the lock now, have a look in before anyone realises what we're doing, the darkness is a good enough cover for us, its not gonna be easy to do it in the morning, too light and too many witnesses."

Sam nodded slowly, twirling his key around his finger before he shoved it into his jean pocket, glancing around him.

"Room ten should be fairly close to room thirteen, any chance you suggested the room to him when I wasn't paying attention" Sam remarked suspiciously, watching the small smile which came to Dean's face as he turned to look at Sam.

"Of course I did Sammy" he replied grinning when he caught the look on Sam's face, "Come on Sam, don't look like at me like that, thirteen is just a number, just shows that you should have been paying attention instead of daydreaming about Jess" Dean said, a grin still linger around his mouth. "It works out well this way, You're only a few doorways down from room ten."

"Where are you staying? Room twelve?" Sam asked ignoring Dean's comment. Dean shook his head.

"The guy has put me and Tansy in room seven so we should be on the opposite side of the motel to you, somewhere over there I'm guessing." he pointed in the opposite direction from where they were walking. Sam nodded his head, following the movement before he sighed, sticking his cold hands into his jacket pocket.

"Let's just get this over and done with Dean" he remarked, bowing his head against the wind and hurrying to the door. He stopped by room ten and glanced around, surprised to see that Dean was strolling at a much slower pace then he had been. Shaking his head Sam spoke. "You wanna do this?" he offered, indicating the door with a nod.

"You got any of your pick pocketing stuff on you Sam?" Dean asked curiously, Sam patted him self down with a frown before he stopped, reaching into his pocket and pulling out two long thin piece of metal, he held them up in the faint light. Dean smiled.

"Off you go then, my kit is packed away in my bag which is in my room, no point in me heading over there when you've got all your stuff on you. You get us in Sammy and I'll watch and run interference with anyone who decided to come and investigate" Dean remarked, flashing Sam a smile before he turned away, his eyes fixed on the night around them. Sam watched his back for a moment before he rolled his eyes at the use of Dean's nickname for him. He turned and looked at the door, his eyes narrowing slightly at it before he hunched down to the lock, looking around him once more he began his task, trusting Dean to keep him informed on anything which was happening around them.

He wiggled the two metal poles around in the lock for a moment before he felt the lock resistance, he twisted it and heard the satisfying click which indicated that he had been successful and they now had access to their Dad's room. He grinned, slipping his equipment back into his pocket before he reached out for the handle and twisted it, pushing the door open. Sam wrinkled his nose against the stale air which assaulted his sense of smell as he pushed him self back to his feet and entered the room. He glanced around him, his eyes widening as his mouth fell open, memories from the past assaulting him.

This was definitely their father's room; he'd stake his life on it.

Sam twisted on the spot, reaching out through the open doorway and grabbed his brother by the back of his leather jacket; yanking him into the room and slamming the door close behind them. He heard Dean make a sound of annoyance at the rough treatment before his brother shrugged off his grip and moved away from him. Sam ignored him, his attention fixed on the interior of the room around them.

Sheets of paper covered in their father messy handwriting and small pictures were stuck on every available surface available in the room, on the walls, on the back of the doors even on every inch of the mirrors. Both the unmade bed and table surfaces were littered with books, some half open as though their Dad had literally left the room and was holding his reading place. Everything pointed to their Dad having just left minutes before but there was something which made Sam believe that it had been days before.

"Whoa" Sam muttered quietly, licking at his lips as he shook his head, "Nice to know that some things about this family haven't changed in four years." Dean glanced around at him but remained silent. Instead he turned away from him and headed over to the bedside table, reaching down and switching the lamp on bringing some much needed light to the room. Sam glanced towards him watching as Dean picked up a burger wrapper, peering into it and sniffing cautiously at it, his face twisting in disgust as he recoiled back from the smell, throwing the burger and wrapper into the bin. Sam shook his head, cautiously stepping over the salt line surrounding the room with a raised eyebrow. Normally they only placed the salt lines by the entrances to the room, not this far into it. Their father had gone as far as to surround both beds with the stuff. "So any thoughts you want to share with the rest of the class?" Sam asked, reaching up and running a hand through his hair.

"Well from the look of the place and the smell of that" Dean remarked, absently waving his hand in the direction of the burger he had just chucked. "I don't think Dad's been in this room for a couple of days, maybe even slightly longer then that, Its probably pretty safe to assume that when he sent me that voice mail he was just leaving Jericho for some reason."

"Probably" Sam agreed with a nod, bending down and picking up some of the grains of salt from the floor, rubbing them between his finger trips before he let them fall back to the ground. He glanced up towards his brother, feeling a glimmer of worry blossom in his stomach. "Look at this Dean" he said attracting his brother's attention to him as he pushed him self back to his feet, his waved a hand out indicating the room at large. "Dad had salt; he had cats-eye shells. Everything in here screams that Dad was worried about something; he was pulling out all the stops here to keep something out of this room. I mean have to ever seem salt lines like this?" he demanded.

"Yeah I noticed that as well" Dean remarked absently, frowning as he walked across the room towards the wall, his eyes fixed on the paper there, leaning forward and reading whatever it was which was stuck up there.

"What's that you're looking at?" Sam demanded, stepping over the salt line he had been looking at and walking across the room to where Dean stood, his arms crossed over his chest as he gazed thoughtfully at the pictures in front of them.

"Pictures and facts about the Centennial high way victims" Dean answered, Sam glanced towards the pictures, his gaze lingering on each individual face as he wondered not for the first time what had happened to them.

"I recognise them from the file you made up, looks like Dad hadn't managed to gather as much information about them as you have" he pointed out, glancing towards Dean in time to see the small smile come to his brother's face before he ironed it out.

"Dad doesn't have the resources I have" Dean answered, sighing out loud and uncrossing his arms. Sam frowned at Dean's comment but before he could question him about what he meant, Dean spoke "You know I seriously don't get this" he remarked, glancing at Sam who raised a questioning eyebrow at him. "These men" Dean continued, reaching up and tapping his finger against one of the missing poster, looking towards it with a frown on his face. "They share nothing in common with each other, other then the obvious fact that they are all men. They all had different jobs from each other, some had money and some of them didn't. They are all different ages to each other; the closest gap between them all being five years. They are even different ethnicities."

"What are you getting at Dean"? Sam asked, turning from his brother and walking to the other side of the room where more papers were stuck up, papers which looked at though they had been ripped from a book.

"Think about it Sammy. There has to be something about these ten men and Troy which linked them together in some fashion. Spirits are like serial killers, they have a certain type of person they search for, they can spend years looking for them but once they have them then they finish them. There is some connection between them all which I'm missing. It's probably right in front of my face but I can't see it. All I know for sure is the fact that this isn't random. These men were picked for a reason, if we figure out what the link is then we can figure out what exactly Constance Welch is and end her once and for all. I for one am looking forward to ganking the bitch."

Sam smirked at the anger in Dean's voice, clearly his brother was still riled up over the fact that his baby had been possessed. He remained silent, his eyes skirting the lore which their father had put up, underlining certain parts and crossing out other. It was the way their father had always worked and Sam found it strangely comforting that he still did. The method had never failed before, Sam nibbled absently on his lower lip, glancing to the right of him. His eyes widened as he noticed the article which they had found earlier on in the library. He made his way over to it, tilting to his head to the side as he read the words which their father had scrawled above the article, underlining it several time in a thick black pen.

"A woman in white" he muttered to him self, his eyes dropping to the picture of Constance sadly before he shook his head and turned to Dean who was standing with his back to him, still looking at the pictures of the ten victims. "Dean" he called out "Check this out, it looks like Dad found the connection between them all, not only that but he's found out exactly what Constance Welch is."

"What is it?" Dean demanded, turning to face him. Sam nodded his head, jabbing his thumb towards the article.

"Looks like he found the same article about Constance that we did, she's a woman in white Dean, that's the connection between them all and why they are all men" Sam pointed out, watching Dean as the older man breathed out, glancing behind him to look at the pictures once more.

"Well, well, well you sly Dogs" Dean remarked, shaking his head before he turned back to Sam. "So if Dad figured out that Constance Welch was a woman in white then it would stand to reason that his next move would be to find out exactly where her body was buried and destroy it in a good old fashion salt and burn move. Clearly though he didn't bother to do that before he skipped town otherwise Troy wouldn't be rotting somewhere dead now. He'd be working at the bar and grill, saving for his new car and thinking dirty thoughts about girls who weren't his girlfriend."

"Like you've never had dirty thoughts about other women in the past" Sam remarked, shooting his brother a wide grin over his shoulder. Dean raised an eyebrow at him.

"I'm sorry Sammy, have you met my wife?" he queried, a hint of seriousness to his voice. "Why would I need to think of another woman when I get to sleep in the same bed as her each and every night?" he asked grinning when Sam rolled his eyes at him and shuddered dramatically.

"Yeah way too much information into the twisted way your mind works Dean" he remarked, grinning when Dean laughed.

"If you think that is twisted then I've taught you nothing Sammy that was incredibly tame, in fact I'd go as far as to say there's nothing twisted about it you prude" he answered

"Whatever you say Dean," Sam responded, glancing back at the article. "You know maybe Dad did burn the body before he left, It wouldn't be the first time we've come across a spirit who remains after their body is gone because they have another weakness, something else which keeps them chained to this world" he asked, glancing over when Dean moved away from the pictures and crossed the room, coming to a stop next to him.

"Dad would have checked that out before he burned her" Dean said "Does the article actually say where she was buried after she took the plunge?"

"Nothing in the article" Sam answered, skim reading the words. "Though if I was Dad then I would go and ask the one person around who would know exactly where she was" he commented, tapping his finger tip against the picture of Constance's husband. "I'd hunt down Joseph Welch, make up some excuse and ask him directly" he remarked, stepping away from the picture. Dean lingered by it for a moment, looking at it with a thoughtful expression before he spoke.

"Alright, so we know what we have to do now. Why don't you go and see whether you can find anything online that would help us locate him, he can't have disappeared off the face of the planet, he's gotta have an address somewhere" Dean remarked, glancing down at his watch. "I'll go and get cleaned up, and then we can head over to my room and grab Tansy and James and head over to the diner and grab something to eat. We can decide what the best of plan of action is for tomorrow and how we're gonna play this." He flashed Sam a glimpse of his genuine smile before he turned away from him, peeling his mud encrusted jacket from his shoulders as he headed towards the door which would lead to the bathroom.

"Hey Dean" Sam said, meeting Dean's eyes when his brother turned back to him with a questioning look on his face. Sam nervously licked his lips, running a hand through his hair. "Look about what I said earlier on the bridge. You know about mum and Dad, I'm sorry, I-"he stopped when Dean held up his hand, palm facing Sam in a classic stop sign.

"Enough Sammy, you know how I feel about these chick flick moments you seem hell bent on sharing with me" Dean teased. Sam laughed, shaking his head as he felt a weight lift from his shoulders. The more time he spent with his brother the more he remembered how things used to be between the two of them before everything had changed.

"Well that's your loss then" he answered. "I had this whole great speech planned jerk!"

"I'm sure I'll survive not knowing it bitch" Dean responded before he turned and headed into the bathroom, closing the door behind him.

Sam shook his head, smiling fondly at the closed door before he turned and looked around the room again, the smile fading from his face. Something bad must have happened to their Dad for him to leave in such a hurry.

He moved towards the table, lifting a few books up and glancing at the titles before he placed them back on the table. His eyes moved around, stopping when he caught a photo stuffed in the frame of the mirror.

He glanced once more towards the closed bathroom door before he headed over to it, reaching out and pulling it out. It was a picture of the three of them; he could remember it vaguely even though he had only been four at the time it had been taken. He was sat on their Dad's lap with Dean sitting just on the other side of him. He wondered vaguely who had the taken the picture of them, it was clearly someone who their father had trusted enough to let them near enough to Sam and Dean to take the picture. Their Dad had always been overprotected of them when they were younger.

Shaking his head, Sam walked over to the unmade bed, shoving some books out of the way so he could sink down onto the mattress with a tired sigh. He glanced at the picture one more time before he looked back towards the closed door.

What had happened here?

* * *

Author Note

**I'm hoping to start updating this story twice a week but don't hold me to it. Things are going mad here at the moment what with family stuff and having a life and everything. I'm hoping to buy a new laptop shortly which means I'll be able to properly write on my way to and from work…**

**Thanks for reading!**


	16. Chapter 16

Reunion

By

Ava Brett

Disclaimer

**The characters of Sam, Dean and John Winchester do not belong to me; they belong to the creator of supernatural which you know isn't me.**

**The characters of Tansy and James Winchester however do belong to me so please do not use them without my permission.**

**As usual I am only using the characters for my own entertainment purposes not for anything else**

Author Note

**Here's the next chapter for you all.**

**I really fancied a chilled out chapter before the next few where the drama kicks into play. I also wanted to explore Tansy a bit more and show her as a mother and a wife as well as an individual. I figured it was time to give the reader another glimpse into her personality to show why Dean loves her so much. **

**Its always fun writing scenes with her and Dean in because I enjoy writing the dialogue and banter between the pair of them. I always try and make it come across that they do love each other so hopefully I've been successful in doing that!**

**Not to mention this chapter features James and he is just so freaking cute to write. Dean just turns to mush when his son is around, its nice exploring that softer side of the elder Winchester!**

**Anyway enjoy **

Overall Summary

**When Sam left for Stanford it never occurred to him that life would go on without him, now his brother is back, needing his help in locating their father but he isn't alone. Sam needs to figure out where he stands now and decide once and for all whether he is a Winchester of not.**

Chapter Summary

**Hands up…**

Overall Romances

**Dean Winchester/Tansy Winchester (OFC), Sam Winchester/Jessica Moore and Troy Squire/Amy Hein**

Romance for this chapter

**Dean Winchester / Tansy Winchester (OFC), mentions of Troy Squire / Amy Hein and Troy Squire / Constance Welch**

* * *

Chapter Sixteen

* * *

**1****st**** November 2005**

**18:45**

**Room Seven**

**Blue Tiger Motel**

**Jericho**

**California**

* * *

Tansy Winchester's Point of View

* * *

Tansy sighed in annoyance, throwing down the book she had been trying to read for the past hour on to the mattress and focusing her attention on the clock opposite her bed instead, a glare fixed on her face. It was already six forty five in the evening and she hadn't heard anything from Dean since he had dropped her and James off at the motel with a quick kiss before he had driven away with his brother leaving her staring after them.

Dean had always texted her when he was out on the Hunt to let her know that he was safe and sound wherever he was but this time he hadn't. She knew he was probably just distracted, excited at having his brother back at his side just like he used to be, but it didn't stop her worrying over him and wishing he would pick up his damn mobile phone and call her. All she wanted was to hear his voice for a moment just so she could reassure her self that he was fine and that she wasn't going to lose him like she had lost so many other family members in her life time.

She brought her knees to her chest, wrapping her arms around them and resting her chin against them, closing her eyes briefly. She was positive that Dean was fine wherever he was. God knew that her husband was more then capable of looking after him self, able to pull off moves and shots that Tansy had never seen before. There was no way this thing would get the drop on him especially if Sam was as good a Hunter as both Dean and John had told her he was.

Breathing out nosily, Tansy shifted her body, scooting across the mattress to the edge of the bed before pushing her self to her feet. She stretched her arms above her head, twisted side to side for a moment before she bridged the gap between the two beds, kneeling down beside the second one, her gaze fixed on the small occupant. It was clear that James was fighting against the sleep trying to claim him, he looked exhausted but she knew that wouldn't stop him. James had inherited every ounce of his father's stubbornness and the small boy had been determined to stay awake so he could receive his goodnight kiss and story from Dean.

"Hey sweetie" Tansy said softly, watching as James shuffled on the bed, tilting his head back on the pillow so he could look at her in the faint light. She smiled at him, her heart swelling as she reached out and gently stroked his dark hair away from his half closed eyes. Out of everything she had accomplished in her life there was no doubt in her mind that having James was the greatest thing she had managed. The best of both her and Dean wrapped up in one deliciously cute little package that was destined to steal and break hearts one day.

"Mamma" James answered through a yawn, his grip tightening on his ragged teddy bear. "Where's Daddy?" he asked, his mouth drooping down into a sad expression.

"Daddy is just out with Uncle Sammy but he'll be back real soon to see you, nothing would keep him away from you sweetie, you know that. Your Daddy loves you more then anything in this world but you know he wouldn't mind if you fell asleep either, he wouldn't want you to wait for him if you were sleepy and wanted to rest instead."

"Not sleepy "James responded stubbornly, reaching up and rubbing his fist against his eyes "Wait for Daddy Mamma" he stated, clutching at his teddy bear. Tansy sighed, leaning down and kissing his forehead, resting her hand against his cheek for a moment. She opened her mouth to speak closing it and turning to the door with a narrowed look when a sharp knock broke the silence in the room. She came to her feet, her eyes fixed on door as she moved silently over to her bed, opening the top drawer of the bed side table and pulling out her gun. She looked towards James who was sitting up in bed watching her with wide eyes. She smiled reassuringly at him, holding her hand over her lips.

"Keep quiet sweetie" she whispered to him, waiting until he nodded before she headed over to the door, moving forward and glancing through the peephole to see the familiar figure of her husband and her brother in law.

"About freaking time" she muttered to her self, she dropped her gaze to check that the salt lines were still undisturbed, before reaching out and twisted the handle, stepping back so she was safety behind the devil trap she had drawn with difficulty on the ceiling. She lifted her gun up pointing it steadily at the entrance; her eyes fixed on them as they pushed the door open and walked into the room. Dean looked unsurprised by the fact he had a gun pointed at him but Sam looked shocked, staring at her with his mouth open as though he couldn't believe his eyes. Tansy ignored her, meeting Dean's familiar green eyes with a steady look.

"Welcome home love" she remarked calmly. "You should know the drill by now, tell me something that only Dean would know" she requested. Dean smiled softly at her, shaking his head as he reached behind him and shut the door. He stepped over the salt barrier and walked right up to her passing easily under the devils trap. Tansy's shoulders slumped down in relief when Dean's hand wrapped around the back of her neck, the touch warm and reassuring.

"You told me that you were pregnant with James when we went out for burgers at that little diner in Texas after we had finished up the mad spirit case. If memories serves we had to go there every night because you became obsessed with their onion rings" he answered. Tansy smiled slowly.

"They were good onion rings" she answered "We should go back there one time and try them again" Dean nodded.

"We could do" he replied before looking over his shoulder towards Sam who had stepped over the salt barrier but lingered by the door looking mildly uncomfortable. Tansy quirked her eyebrow at him as Dean spoke. "Come in Sammy, she's not gonna blow your head off."

"Unless you were a demon" Tansy added "Then all bets are off" she flashed Sam a smile, waiting until he came to join Dean before she put the safety on her gun and placed it on the nearby table surface.

"It's about time you finally got here Dean, a certain little man had been refusing to go to sleep until he's received his goodnight kiss from you" Tansy remarked, glancing over her shoulder towards James, a smile coming to her face when she saw the massive, sleepy grin on the small boy's face as he held out his arms towards Dean.

"Yeah sorry about that" Dean answered, giving her a distracted kiss on the mouth before he slipped past to her, his full attention fixed on James who literally threw him self into his father's arms, holding onto him tightly and talking excitedly to him. Tansy shook her head, watching as Dean gathered the tired boy into his arms and spoke, his voice low, producing a comforting murmur. She turned her attention to look at Sam taking in his disbelieving look as he stared at his brother and Nephew.

"You're not the first person to get that look on their face when they see this side to him you know" she remarked lightly, shrugging when Sam's eyes turned to meet her. "A lot of people can't seem to believe it."

"Oh I can believe it" Sam said firmly, a small smile playing around his mouth "Dean raised me after all, its just a bit strange seeing him doing the same to someone else" he breathed out, looking awkwardly around him, his eyes lingering on the books which she had unpacked.

"So did you manage to get a room here tonight?" she asked "It looked pretty rammed earlier on when I was getting our room. I would have got you one as well but-" her voice trailed off as she shrugged, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Yeah no problem" Sam answered, sticking his hand into the pocket of his zipped top. "I'm in room thirteen so I'm on the opposite side from here" Sam waved his hand towards the closed door.

"Room thirteen, unlucky for some" she remarked. Sam smirked.

"Not as unlucky as room 237" he answered lightly. Tansy grinned.

"Fan of the shining?" she asked curiously, Sam shook his head.

"Not greatly, but I think it's safe to say that if you live with Dean then you've seen the movie, its one of his favourites" he stated.

"That's because it's a great movie" Dean remarked, coming up beside them. "We've found out a lot about the case. I was gonna say we go down to the diner to talk about it and grab something to eat but that's out of the question now that little man has gone down for the night" he said, reaching up and pinching his lower lip with a slight frown.

"I can go to the diner for us" Sam offered instantly, a relieved look coming to his face. "It's only down the road. I can go and order what we want and then bring the food back here. When I'm back we can decide what we're gonna do tomorrow. Dean you can fill Tansy in on what we've found out while I'm gone. It will save us time later on."

Dean considered his offer for a moment before he shrugged and nodded his head.

"If you don't mind doing it then knock your self out." Dean remarked "I'll have a bacon cheeseburger with a portion of chips and a side of onion rings" he said, flashing Tansy a quick smile and a wink which she returned.

"Just a normal cheeseburger and chips for me Sam, thanks for this, I don't know about you both but I'm starving!" Sam nodded his head at both of them.

"No problem, I won't be long" he commented before he turned and walked across the room, slipping out of the room and into the night without another word, softly closing the door behind him so he didn't disturb James. The minute he was gone, Tansy moved, twisting on the spot and wrapping her arms around Dean's waist, burying her head against his chest with a happy sigh. He smelt of soap and a different shower gel then she was used to smelling. She tilted her head back, meeting his eyes with a frown.

"You've had a shower" she stated "Did something happen to you while you were out?" she asked. Dean laughed, shaking his head as he wrapped his own arms around her and shrugged.

"Nothing more so then usual Tans" he responded, kissing the top of her head before he released her, heading over to the bed. She watched with a raised eyebrow as he sank down onto it, lying back and resting his hands against his eyes. She bit down on her lower lip before she moved, heading over to join him. She climbed onto the mattress and sat crossed legged next to him facing towards his body so she could peer down into his face. He glanced up at her, reaching out and wrapping his hand around the back of her neck with a sigh.

"So it sounds like you and Sam might have had an adventurous time while you were out at the bridge then" she remarked softly "What exactly did you find out?"

"Dad was here at this motel Tansy" he said after a slight pause, opening his eyes so he could meet her gaze. Her mouth fell open in surprise.

"John was at this motel?" she repeated "Where? Does it look like he's coming back here anytime soon?" she demanded, glancing cautiously over her shoulder to make sure that James didn't hear his grandfather's name. He would only start questioning where the older man was. Thankfully James was fast asleep, snoring lightly to himself has he hugged his toy to his body.

"Yep he was based in room ten, the guy at the reception told me because Dad used his fake credit card to buy the room out for a month."

"Room ten" she remarked thoughtfully. "Did you and Sam manage to have a look in it?" Dean nodded his head.

"Yep, the placed was covered with papers and all the usual stuff Dad uses when he's on a hunt. The place looked like a freaking hurricane had torn through it. He had salt lines every where and every other kind of protection known to man in that one room. Something was most definitely up with him Tans but god knows what it is. He was definitely trying to keep something from getting in and I doubt it was the spirit we're dealing with here, it was something else, something dangerous enough to have him spooked."

"The yellow eyed demon?" Tansy said quietly, her eyes widening when Dean shrugged.

"Could me but then again perhaps it isn't. Dad's left no clue about it but I think it's safe to say that he isn't planning on coming back to Jericho any time soon. Whatever he has found or seen has sent him running else where. Question is where?"

"Well at least you know that he was definitely here at one point Dean which is something" she pointed out softly. "We need to finish this hunt up and then go home. I'm guessing from what Sam was saying you now know what the hell it is we're hunting?" she asked, changing the subject when she noticed the look on his face as the mention of John. Dean nodded, using his grip on her neck to softly pull her down so she was lying next to him on the mattress, her head resting against his shoulder. She automatically wrapped an arm around him, burrowing closer to him.

"Yep we do" Dean agreed. "Turns out that Constance Welch is now a woman in white" he said. Tansy shifted, leaning on her elbow so she could look into Dean's face with a raised eyebrow.

"A woman in white" she stated flatly "So you're telling me that all of those men were unfaithful to their other halves?" she demanded, shaking her head when Dean nodded. "Poor Amy, there she was thinking that Troy was her Prince Charming who she was going to ride off into the sunset with and instead he was planning on cheating on her with some random stranger he had just met!"

"Don't be so harsh on him, for all you know Amy could be a complete and utter bitch" he remarked "Besides the kid was only nineteen, he only reacted the way most nineteen year old boys would act if they were faced with that situation."

"Hmmm, still doesn't change the fact that he was planning on being unfaithful to her" Tansy pointed out sounding unimpressed. Dean glanced up at her, leaning up so he could kiss her, he leaned back examining he expression before he smiled.

"Don't worry Tans, Constance can't touch me because I am a faithful husband" he stated firmly, framing her face with his hands. Tansy met his gaze for a moment before she rolled her eyes at him.

"Trust me love, you'd be wishing that Constance ended you if I ever found out that you had cheated on me. What she did to you would seem pleasant compared to what I would do to you" she remarked, sitting up and sighing. "So at least we know what we're after which means that if we find her body then we can end this quickly and have Sam back by Monday morning, we can have the meal with them and then finally go home" Dean grinned, sitting up as well.

"Yeah well home sounds pretty damn good right about now" he confessed, patting the mattress. "I keep forgetting how shit motel mattresses are. I mean how the hell are people supposed to sleep on these damn things? It feels like lying on a freaking stone wall or something" he demanded, shooting her an amused look when she laughed.

"I doubt most people come to a hotel like this to sleep Dean" she answered, wrinkling her nose up in distaste as she glanced around her.

"True, I suppose it's only for tonight" Dean responded. "At least the bed doesn't seem to bother James which is the main thing" he remarked, nodding towards their sleeping son.

"James would sleep anywhere as long as one of us was around" she pointed out. "So our plan is simple then" she said changing the subject back to its previous topic. "We find Constance's body and we burn it. With the body gone, she will be gone and this whole thing will be other and done with and we can focus on the other important things, like checking in and finding your Dad"

"Yeah" Dean said sounding distracted. Tansy searched his face for a moment, before she reached out and touched his face, turning it round so he was facing her.

"We will find John" she promised "It will just take more time then we had originally though it would" Dean nodded slowly.

"I hope you're right Tansy, I really do."

* * *

Author Note

**I've been really unwell the past few days so I can't promise when the next update on any of my stories will be. Luckily this was already written but hopefully I'll be well soon **


	17. Chapter 17

Reunion

By

Ava Brett

Disclaimer

**The characters of Sam and Dean Winchester and also Jessica Moore do not belong to me in any fashion whatsoever; they belong to the creator of supernatural which as you all know isn't me… though I wish it was**

**The characters of Tansy and James Winchester however do belong to me so please do not use them without my permission.**

**As usual I am only using the characters for my own entertainment purposes not for anything else**

Author Note

**I'm finally beginning to feel better so hopefully I'll be able to get some writing done today, I've certainly made sure that I've got nothing planned for today so fingers crossed it works out.**

**I do enjoy writing the conversations between Sam and Dean and strangely enough also between Sam and Tansy. I always feel like Tansy and Sam are one step away from a bitch fight and that the only thing which stops them is Dean. It makes writing their prickly relationship together highly amusing for me because at the moment I think its safe to say that they don't like each other!**

**Just so you know I'll be going back today and changing the date for the story. So everything which has happened before from chapter three onwards has occurred on the 31****st**** October and not the 1****st**** November like I had originally stated. Everything which happens from this chapter onwards until about chapter twenty four or something similar will occur on the 1****st**** November and not the 2nd. Hopefully this makes sense!**

**Still please enjoy **

Overall Summary

**When Sam left for Stanford it never occurred to him that life would go on without him, now his brother is back, needing his help in locating their father but he isn't alone. Sam needs to figure out where he stands now and decide once and for all whether he is a Winchester of not.**

Chapter Summary

**"I'll be fine... just get to the other two"**

Overall Romances

**Dean Winchester/Tansy Winchester (OFC), Sam Winchester/Jessica Moore and Troy Squire/Amy Hein**

Romance for this chapter

**Sam Winchester / Jessica Moore and Dean Winchester / Tansy Winchester (OFC)**

* * *

Chapter Seventeen

* * *

**1****st**** November 2005**

**07:45 AM**

**Room Thirteen**

**Blue Tiger Motel**

**Jericho**

**California**

* * *

Sam Winchester's point of view

* * *

Sam yawned, stretching out on the motel bed, his gaze fixed on the cracked discoloured ceiling above him. He just couldn't get used to sleeping in a room by him self. When he had been younger he had always had Dean with him, taking care of him and sleeping in the second bed, his snores often soothing Sam allowing him to fall sleep, even after he left to go to Stanford he had found him self in the dorms with a room mate before he moved out of them to live with Jessica in their rented apartment. He honestly couldn't remember the last time he had woken up to such silence. It was rather disconcerting.

Ignoring the thought as unimportant, Sam pushed him self into a sitting position, running his hand down his face in an attempt to wake him self up. He twisted his body around, squinting in the dark at the clock situated on the bedside table next to him.

It was only seven forty five in the morning.

This time tomorrow he would be in the impala heading back towards Stanford and Jessica, mentally trying to prepare him self for his big interview. It seemed crazy that it was only yesterday that Dean had appeared in his apartment asking for his help, somehow it seemed longer to him. It felt as though things hadn't changed between him and Dean even though he knew that they had, the mere presence of Tansy and James was enough to prove that point.

Shaking his head, Sam breathed out deeply, kicking the duvet cover off of him and climbing to his feet, stretching his arms above his head and yawning again. He could have really done with another hour or so in bed but he knew that wasn't going to happen, not when they had so much to do that day. He headed across the room to the small bathroom, kicking the door shut behind him.

He went through his morning routine, showering and brushing his teeth, his mind fixed firmly on what was coming for them. Sam had managed to locate an address for Joseph Welch the previous night so they were heading over there after breakfast to question him about where he had buried his wife. That was of course whether he had buried her at all, there was always a chance that he had had her cremated which would mean that they would have to embark on plan B. Trying to decide what it was which was keeping Constance's spirit earth bound.

God he hoped there was a body for them to salt and burn.

Sam ran a hand over his head, giving his reflection a quick glance to make sure he was decent before he exited the bathroom, pulling out a pair of jeans and a t-shirt from his duffle bag and quickly putting them on. He sank onto the mattress, pulling his socks and boots on so he would be ready to leave when Dean knocked for him.

He glanced over his shoulder, leaning back on the bed and grabbed his mobile from the side, glancing down at the screen with a raised eyebrow. He had a miss call and a voice mail from Jessica. He must have been out like a light the minute his head had hit the pillow to have missed it, especially as he tended to keep his phone on loud for this very reason.

Shaking his head in annoyance, Sam held down the button which would connect him to his voice mail and lifted the phone to his ear, absently tapping his finger against his knee as he waited for the message to begin. He didn't have long to wait.

"Hi Sam, so it's me, your extremely bored girlfriend sitting back at Stanford. It's about ten twenty here on a Saturday night and I'm stuck inside, staring at the TV, watching some weird ass program which I can't make heads or tails of. I think the main guy is sleeping with his sister or something or maybe it's his cousin. I'm not too sure if I'm being honest with you. You know what the worst thing is though? The stupid thing is actually addictive! It's like I have to know what's gonna happen, like is his girlfriend gonna find out and for the record I am completely blaming you for this. If you were here then we could be doing other, more interesting stuff"

Sam smiled at the sound of Jessica's outraged voice, glancing towards the door when he heard a knock indicating someone was waiting to come in. He came to his feet, walking across the room still listening to Jessica speak.

"So anyway that has managed to lead me very nicely to my next question. How are things going with Dean? Have you managed to find your Dad yet? I'm hoping the fact that you haven't been in contact with me means it's going well and you're actually enjoying yourself and its not because you're stashing Dean's body somewhere or something similar to that, because that wouldn't be good Sam. Are things going well between the two of you? I mean I know it's been a long time and stuff and you were all nervous about going on this trip with him and his family." Sam glanced through the peephole, opening the door and letting Dean into the room, smiling a greeting at him. "Hopefully its not as bad as you thought, I mean your brother and Tansy seemed pretty cool. So anyway I've-"

Sam paused the message, looking up at Dean with a questioning look. His brother was leaning against the closed door, looking refreshed and happy as he waited for Sam to finish. It was a look which Sam wasn't used to seeing on his brother's face.

"Jess" he remarked, lifting the phone up "She rang last night but I missed it so I'm just listening to her voice mail. She talks a lot when she gets going" he remarked with a fond smile coming to his face.

"You don't need to explain yourself to me Sammy" Dean remarked with a shrug. "Your business is your business after all. I've just come to grab you for breakfast. We're starving so we're gonna head to the diner where you got the food from last night. You fancy joining us or you gonna stay here until we're finished instead?"

Sam stared at Dean for a moment, giving his question some consideration.

"Actually breakfast sounds pretty damn good right about now" he answered. "Just let me finish up here and I'll catch you down there. You lot grab the table or something" Dean nodded his head, pushing him self away from the door with a smile.

"Awesome" he stated simply. "Tansy's already on her way down there with James so I'll go and catch them up before they get too far ahead. You want me to order you something if they come to take it before you get there?" he asked. Sam nodded his head.

"Yeah just get me a portion of bacon and eggs with a large cup of white coffee, thanks Dean. I'll meet you there shortly." Dean nodded, flashing him a smile before he turned and open the door, exiting into the sunshine and leaving Sam alone in his room. Sam glanced at the closed door before he hit the play button on his phone listening to the rest of Jessica's message.

"-Decided exactly where we're gonna go for dinner on Monday night. There's this cool new Mexican restaurant which has just opened up a few blocks over from the campus. Zach headed over there last night and he said it was awesome. The food was good and the portions huge and apparently the drinks menu is pretty damn good as well focusing mainly on cocktails and I know how much you like cocktails even though you try to hide it from everyone. I've booked us a table for five thirty just in case things run over at your interview or something comes up with Dean and Tansy, so all of that is now sorted. I've spent most of today painting and that's about it though Becky did pop round during the day to keep me company and to have a chat. Hopefully your day has been a bit more exciting then mine has been. There's nothing much more to say. I'm gonna finish watching this program and then I'm going to bed so come home soon Sam so I can show you exactly how much I've been missing you. I love you! Night, Night."

Sam frowned when his phone suddenly beeped loudly in his ear; he glanced down at the screen rolling his eyes when he saw Dean's number flashing at him. Shaking his head he hit the call connect button and spoke.

"You've been gone for like two minutes Dean, missing me already or something?"

"Dude five-oh take off, head to the diner and meet up with the other two" Dean stated bluntly, his voice hushed. Sam came to his feet, his eyes widening as he looked towards the door. Five-oh meant that there were police in the area, police who was onto them.

"Shit" Sam swore, reaching up and dragging his hand through his hair. "How the hell are they onto us? What about you Dean? Can you get away from them at all?" Sam demanded.

"Yeah that's not happening Sam, they're already on their way over to say hey and they look pissed. I'll be fine as usual; you get the hell out of there. Go find Tansy and Dad" he said, his words rushing over themselves in his haste to get them out before he quickly hung up leaving Sam listening to the dial tone. Sam took the phone away from his ear staring down at it with an uneasy expression before he crept over to the front window and peered out making sure to keep out of sight. He watched nervously as the two deputies from the day before stopped in front of Dean who turned round to face them, a smile plastered on his face looking as though he didn't have a care in the world.

Sam wished he could hear exactly what was being said between them but the only way he would have been able to do that would be to open the window and that would have attracted attention to the room.

He cursed under his breathe when Deputy Jaffe turned away from Dean and pointed directly at Sam's room, sending the other Deputy over to investigate it, clearly they had seen Dean come out of it or knew that it was the room the owner had assigned them.

"Fuck" Sam muttered, turning and heading away from the window and into the small bathroom, pushing the door to behind him. He glanced around him, his eyes focusing on the window with a feeling of dread. He was going to have to through it. There was simply no other escape route for him to take. He slammed the lid of the toilet down and stood on it, opening the window as far as he could. It was just large enough for him to pull himself through though it was going to be a tight squeeze. He glanced once more at the door, his eyes narrowing. He could hear the Deputy calling to the manager demanding that he opened the room up so he could look in it.

Gritting his teeth together, Sam reached up and clutched at both sides of the window, pulling him self up, he twisted round awkwardly trying to make his tall body as small as possible, he pushed hard against the outer wall, breathing out to give him self more space to move around. He pushed, his eyes closing when he remained stuck solid before he suddenly gave way, his body shooting out of the window, sending him sprawling onto the concrete ground beneath him.

Sam hissed in pain, silently cursing as he scrambled to his feet, glancing around once to make sure no one had noticed his exit before he turned, walking calmly round the back towards one of the side roads which would lead him away from the motel and on to the main road. He had to assume that the deputies had Dean and that they were going to transport his brother back to the station for further questioning, though what they were going to question him about was beyond Sam. They had been careful; there was no way the police should have known who they were or what exactly they were doing there.

He breathed out shakily, stuffing his hands into his pocket and kept his head down, thinking hard. Dean had told him that Tansy and James had gone ahead to the diner to grab them a table while Dean had come for him which meant that not only had the Deputies not seen Dean's wife and son but also that they had no idea that he and Dean were with anyone else.

He would hook up with Tansy at the diner like Dean had told him to and then they could come up with a plan between the two of them on how they were going to deal with the mess. The police weren't going to be looking for Sam properly yet, they would be hoping that Dean would break easily and spill everything to them. Sam almost felt sorry for the Sheriff and his Deputies, they would be waiting a hell of a long time if they were waiting for Dean to break, his brother was one of the most stubborn men in existence. There was no way in hell that a random sheriff in a forgotten town in California would be the one to break Dean after everything his brother had faced in the past, especially when his family and brother were counting on him. The thought was almost laughable.

Sam climbed up the steps to the diner and pulled open the door, stepping in and automatically glancing around him. His eyes landed on Tansy at the back of the room and he breathed a silent sigh of relief, thankful for the first time since they had met to see her. He walked over, keeping his head down and slid into the free space opposite her. He glanced to the side to see James in a highchair, eating his food with a look of intense glee on his face, a look which Sam had seen countless of times on Dean's face when he had been enjoying a meal. The small boy was wearing half his porridge around his face but he certainly seemed to be enjoying him self from what Sam could tell. Without thinking, he reached over and ran his hand over James's soft dark hair, smiling when the small boy glanced up at him.

"Morning Sam" Tansy remarked, attracting Sam's attention away from his Nephew to her. She glanced up from her breakfast, eyes scanning his face for a moment before she looked behind him, searching the diner with a small frown. "Where's Dean? He went to get you from the room, did you miss him or is he in the toilet or something?" she asked an undercurrent of concern to her voice. Sam shook his head, licking his lips nervously before he spoke, keeping his voice low so he couldn't be overheard by any curious patrons.

"I saw him" he said "but he was caught by the police outside the motel room on his way here" Sam said, watching as Tansy's eyes widened.

"The police caught him" she repeated. "Caught him doing what exactly? Why have they taken him? Have they taken him to the station or are they just asking him some random questions about something? They think he's a federal marshal after all, maybe they just wanted to run something by him" she said, a sudden look of fury coming to her eyes. Sam shrugged his shoulders at her.

"I've got no idea but it didn't look to me like they were asking his opinion on anything from what I could see" he continued speaking, not giving Tansy the chance to barrage him with more questions. "Look the window was closed and I couldn't hear what was being said but it didn't exactly look good and I wasn't gonna stick around to try and find out either Tansy, the Deputies were heading over to the room." Sam said, leaning forward towards her and resting his arms against the table surface. "He managed to ring me before they reached him and told me to get the hell out of the motel room and to come here to meet up with you and James."

Tansy remained silent for a moment, her eyes moving back and forth before she spoke.

"Okay" she said, reaching up and pinching her bottom lip as she clearly thought about the situation. "Okay" she repeated, dropping her hand to the table as she met his eyes with a steady expression. "We've been in worst situations then this in the past and always managed to get out of them intact, the sheriff isn't gonna get anything out of Dean but at least it will keep him and the other Deputies occupied for a bit while we crack on trying to finish this job. Sam the best thing for you to do is to get out of town for a bit. You said last night that Joseph Welch lived out of town right?" she asked curiously. Sam nodded his head.

"Yeah he does, it looked like it would take an hour, maybe a hour and half to get there from Jericho" Sam answered, Tansy nodded.

"Okay, why don't you head over there and question him? We need to find Constance's body so we can end this. The police will come looking for you next, hoping that you'll be easier to intimidate then Dean. It's gonna be harder for them to find you if you're constantly on the move, especially if you're out of town for most of the day."

"That sounds like as good a plan as any" Sam agreed. "I'll get Joseph to talk to me and to tell me exactly where the body of Constance is" he promised, watching when Tansy suddenly smiled at him.

"Yeah well just try and remember that he's sixty four years old Sam. Try not to frighten him to death before you get the answers from him" she remarked lightly, her eyes moving around the diner, lingering on all the other customers faces.

"Thanks for the advice, I'll try and bear it in mind" Sam remarked dryly, rolling his eyes at her before he slumped back in his chair. "What are you going to do?" he asked curiously. Tansy glanced back at him for a second before reaching over and taking James's empty bowl away from him. She reached into the baby bag she had with her and took out a banana, opening it and breaking it into small pieces which she handed to James before she spoke.

"As soon as James has finished eating, I'll head back to the motel and see what's happening there. No one knows that Dean came from our room this morning because I noticed last night that their security cameras were out of action, I think its safe to assume that they are gonna be thinking that you and Dean shared a room last night instead. I'll question the owner and find out if he knows why the police came after the two of you and then I'll figure out a way of getting the cops out of the station for a bit. Dean should be able to handle the rest of it."

"Let's hope he can" Sam said, biting down on his lower lip.

"Trust me Sam, this isn't the first police break out we've had, we've got it down to a fine art now" She answered, reaching down and searching through the pockets of her duffle coat with a slight frown. She made a sound of satisfaction as she pulled out the keys to the impala, placing them on the table and pushing them across the surface towards him. "Take the impala with you Sam" she said "I can easily rent one for the day if I need to. If they've clocked that Dean is the owner then they are gonna be looking for it. The last thing we need is for them to see me driving it and knowing about me and James. Dean's not gonna talk but if they've got any sense then they'll already have fingerprinted him and be checking for him on the system. I kinda think we all want to be gone by the time those results makes it through the lab and back to them. The only good thing is that this town is so small that the labs aren't gonna get round to it for a while"

"That gives us time to play around with, Dean's never gonna talk, not when you and James are in town" Sam said confidently. Tansy nodded, reaching into her handbag and pulling out a pen and paper. She wrote something down, ripping out the page and held it out to Sam who took it automatically.

"That's my mobile number" she said, placing the lid back on her pen. "I realised last night after you left that I had given it to Jess but not to you. Text or call me as soon as you've finished with Joseph Welch and let me know what he has to say for himself. If you call me now I'll have your number and I can keep you informed on what's happening here." Sam nodded, pulling out his mobile from his jacket pocket and quickly entered her as a contact. He hit the call button and waited for a moment before the sounds of Boys II Men suddenly burst out from the phone resting on the table surface next to his sister in law. He glanced towards it before looking back at Tansy with a raised eyebrow.

"Your ring tone is Boys II Men?" Sam remarked in surprise. "I'm surprised that Dean lets you get away with it. Last time I had something similar he got hold of my phone and changed it to a Metallica tune." Tansy grinned.

"Yeah the people who are likely to call me when Dean is around have a tune which has been accepted as being okay by Dean. The rest get Boys II Men. What can I say, I really like them" She breathed out, her expression becoming serious. "You better go Sam, it's a long drive and you still need to get the impala from the motel and get it past the police somehow."

"I can manage it" Sam replied confidently. Tansy nodded.

"Yeah just be careful okay, the last thing we need is for you to end up in the slammer with Dean." Sam rolled his eyes as he came to his feet. He reached over and picked up her coffee mug, downing the contents before he placed it back at the table flashing her an apologetic glance when she looked up at him with a disbelieving look.

"Sorry" he stated "But I was really thirsty and you said it yourself, I don't have the time to stick around and get myself one from the waitress" he commented, reaching up and rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly when Tansy continued to stare at him with an unimpressed look. Her eyes narrowed slightly before her gaze lowered to her plate. She sighed; the noise sounding annoyed as she grabbed a napkin from the side and placed two slices of toast on it before selecting the nicest rashers of bacon from her breakfast placing them on top. She glanced back at him and pushed the napkin over to him.

"You better take that with you, if you're that thirsty that you'd take my drink then you're probably hungry as well. The last thing we need is for you to pass out at the wheel because you're hungry and wreck Dean's car because he'd kill you" she stated calmly. Sam stared down at the napkin in surprise before he gathered it up. "Oh and Sam" Tansy remarked "If you ever take my coffee again then I'll stab you with a knife, just thought it be fair to let you know" she remarked lightly.

"Yeah thanks for the warning" Sam answered with a shake of his head. "I'll text you when I get to Joseph Welch's house. Take care of yourself and James Tansy" he said, reaching out and running his hand over James's head again.

"Same to you Sam" she answered.

Sam sighed, picking up the impala key from the table and headed out the diner without a backwards glance. He looked around him carefully before he headed down the path towards the motel and the impala.

He had a job to do.

* * *

Author Note

**Thanks for taking the time to read!**

**Also if you've review or followed or chosen this story as a favourite then a massive thanks for that as well!**


	18. Chapter 18

Reunion

By

Ava Brett

Disclaimer

**The characters of John, Sam and Dean Winchester and also the owner of the motel do not belong to me in any fashion whatsoever; they do however belong to the creator of supernatural which as you all know isn't me… it's Eric Kripke and I'm not him… not even born in the same country as him and also the wrong gender so yep not me!**

**The characters of Tansy and James Winchester and the mysterious Aaron mentioned at the end of this chapter however do belong to me so please do not use them without my permission.**

**As usual I am only using the characters for my own entertainment purposes and not for anything else**

Author Note

**So I've literally just started a two week holiday from work today which is always awesome, I'm hoping to be able to do some major updating on this story and witch Hunt. In fact I'm hoping to complete Reunion during my time off which means that I might increase the amount I'm updating the story to once every two days, though don't hold me to it. It was depends on my health and plans in the real world.**

**This chapter jumps back to Tansy's point of view but don't worry, the next five chapters belong to Sam and Dean. I just wanted a chapter which not only would show Tansy's reaction to what Sam told her but also show how she reacts in every day situations when Dean isn't with her just so you can have another glimpse at her.**

**The chapter is shorter then the others I've put up, perhaps even the shortest but it needed to be. It still three thousand words so at least that's something.**

**Anyway as stated I'm hoping that the next chapter will be up on Friday or Saturday so look out for it**

**Enjoy!**

Overall Summary

**When Sam Winchester left for Stanford University to study law it never occurred to him that life for his brother Dean would go on without him, now his brother is back, needing help to locate their missing father but he isn't alone. Sam needs to figure out where he stands now and decide once and for all if he's a Winchester or not.**

Chapter Summary

**Tansy does some questioning on her own…**

Overall Romances

**Dean Winchester/Tansy Winchester (OFC), Sam Winchester/Jessica Moore and Troy Squire/Amy Hein**

Romance for this chapter

**Dean Winchester / Tansy Winchester (OFC), Mentions of Sam Winchester / Jessica Moore**

* * *

Chapter Eighteen

* * *

**1****st**** November 2005**

**08:15 AM**

**Park Avenue Diner**

**Jericho**

**California**

* * *

Tansy Winchester's Point of View

* * *

Tansy breathed out nosily, glancing down at her half full plate, her appetite completely gone.

This seriously couldn't be happening, not now, not when they were finally getting somewhere with the case.

Shaking her head she pushed her plate away from her and turned her thoughts to the problem at hand.

Why the hell has the police gone after Sam and Dean? Surely they didn't believe that the brothers could have been the ones who were responsible for the disappearances which had been happening in the town. They hadn't even been in the area when any of the men had gone missing, hell Sam hadn't even been born when the first man had disappeared and Dean must have been three at the very most, perhaps even younger then that. She supposed there was always a chance that they had done a check with the necessary officials to see whether a federal marshal had been dispatched to Jericho to look into the case but somehow that was unlikely, especially as she knew that Dean hadn't given a name when he had shown his badge to the Deputy. Something had happened since yesterday to flag them as a potential person of interest to apprehend, she just couldn't for the life of her figure out why and it was frustrating her.

Shaking her head, Tansy bit down hard on her lip, ignoring the flash of pain the movement caused. She could only assume that the police were panicking, feeling the pressure from the mayor and other important figure heads, figureheads who were probably breathing down their necks, demanding some sort of answer as to why their men folk were disappearing never to be seen again. At least if the police made an arrest for the disappearances, even if it was a wrongful arrest, then it would look like they were making progress of a sort and getting somewhere. Anything to hide the fact that the case continued to baffle them as much as it had done twenty years ago when the first case had emerged.

God if there was one thing which she hated more then demons and supernatural creatures then it was bullshit politics, Politics which appeared to be everywhere as far as she could see.

What Tansy really wanted to do was get her ass back to the motel, change into the one smart suit she had brought with her in case of an emergency and walk straight into that police station announcing her self as Dean's lawyer. It would probably take her twenty minutes at the most to rip their phoney case to shreds until there was no shadow of doubt in anyone's mind that her husband did not belong in that station, answering their idiotic questions. She didn't dare though, not only did she have no one to look after James but she had to remain out of sight and off the police radar so she could help Sam hunt for clues, not only to why the police wanted them in the first place but also to help him with the problem of Constance. The sooner that case was solved then the sooner they could leave Jericho and drop Sam off, have the meal with him and Jess and then finally go home, back to their own comfortable bed and the privacy which automatically came with it.

"Are you ready to head back to the motel baby?" She asked her son, shaking herself out of her thoughts and turning her attention to James with a wide smile as she shook her head at his face. "Look at you, you messy pup, you're meant to eat the food not smear it over your face." She remarked fondly, turning from him and opening up the baby bag which she had dumped on the booth next to her. She hunted round for a moment before she pulled out the package of baby wipes she kept with her at all times. She pulled out two, attacking her son with them and ignoring the protesting noise he made against it, wiping his hands and face before she threw them on her plate of half finished food. "Not long now and then we'll be leaving, I know how much you hate being in a high chair but just be patient a tiny bit longer" she said to him softly, taking off his bib and removing the small container which she had kept the fruit in. James had a nasty habit of picking everything up and throwing it around the place, a habit which normally involved someone, normally her or Dean, getting covered in food.

"Can I get you anything else honey? Some more coffee maybe?" the waitress who had been serving her asked as she approached her.

"No nothing more thank you" Tansy answered absently, running a hand over James's head.

"The rest of your party didn't show up then?" She asked Tansy curiously. Tansy glanced at her sharply but all she could see in the woman's dark eyes was a look of genuine curiosity and interest.

"No, they got held up with something else" Tansy remarked with a shrug. "You know what men can be like at times, they'd forget their own heads if they weren't already attached to their necks" she added, watching when the woman nodded, a knowing, almost amused look coming to her face briefly.

"I sure do honey, you can't trust them as far as you can throw them in my experience" she answered. Tansy nodded, feeling awkward as she glanced away from the older woman, smiling at James instead as she took his hand when the small boy lunged towards her with a frustrated look on his face.

"I'd just like the bill if that's ok" she asked, smiling again as she pulled the baby bag onto her lap, opening it and stuffing all of James's belongings into it. She glanced up as a piece of paper was fluttered in front of her face. "Thanks" she said reaching out and taking it. She expected the woman to walk away but instead she lingered, her attention moving from Tansy to James. Tansy automatically stiffened, watching the woman carefully, ready to spring into action if it was needed.

"Your son is lovely" the waitress commented looking down at James and making little cooing noises at him, James looked back at her, an unimpressed expression on his small face. Tansy couldn't help the small smile which came to her own at the look, she had seen it countless of times on Dean's face in the past, normally when he was faced with a witch of some description. "How old is he exactly?" the waitress asked

Tansy hesitated answering the question before she silently sighed.

"He's two and a half now" she replied.

"That's a lovely age, he's the same age as my granddaughter, you enjoy it honey because pretty soon he'll be older and answering back and you'll remember these days and wish you had them back again" Tansy nodded, glancing away wondering not for the first time what it was about her which made other women want to spill their drama at her. "How are you paying for this honey, cash or card?" The waitress asked suddenly turning professional again. Tansy blinked at the abrupt change before she shook it off, glancing down at the amount on the bill.

"I'll be paying by cash thanks" Tansy replied, opening up her shoulder bag and pulling out her wallet, she pulled out a fresh twenty dollar bill and passed it over.

"Thanks, I'll be back in a moment with your change" the older woman remarked, turning her back on Tansy and heading back to the counter where the till was situated. Tansy breathed out a sigh of relief, her shoulders slumping down as she looked at the picture in her wallet of Dean holding James, both of them smiling brightly at the camera with identical grins. She stroked her thumb across Dean's face for a moment before she closed the wallet and pushed it back in her bag.

The last thing she wanted was for the waitress to see the picture and put two and two together. Tansy had no doubt that the police would come to the diner and they would talk about what had happened at the motel and she knew from experience that waitresses did love to gossip with their customers, especially in small towns. One word from her and the police could come after Tansy, wanting to question her and find out what her part in the case was if anything.

She stood up, gathering her two bags up and unstrapping a James who was getting increasingly noisy through boredom, lifting him up and resting his weight against her hip, she adjusted him slightly so it was more comfortable and silently thanked her lucky stars that she had listened to Dean that morning and pulled the pushchair from the trunk of the impala to use.

"Here you go" The waitress said, holding out thirteen dollars in her hand. Tansy leaned over, taking the ten dollar note.

"Keep the rest" she remarked. "Thank you for the food and drink, I'm only sorry I couldn't finish it all"

"You're very welcome honey" the waitress replied with a smile, looking pleased by Tansy's compliment. Tansy nodded at her, moving towards the entrance of the diner and stopping by the push chair. She positioned both bags in the small basket at the bottom before she placed James in his seat, strapping him in and forcing his hat and mittens on to keep him warm. She left the diner, shivering in the sudden cool air as she lifted the pushchair up and quickly climbed down the stairs, placing it back on the pavement and pushing it in the direction of the motel. She glanced behind her once towards the direction she knew the police station was in before she looked away with a silent sigh trying the ignored the uneasy feeling which was growing with every step she took.

God she hope Dean was okay and they were treating him alright in there.

It took her five minutes to reach their motel. She glanced around her carefully, her eyes widening slightly when she saw the two police cars parked outside room ten, their lights still flashing blue and red. Tansy glanced down at James, unsurprised to see that he was completely memorised by the changing lights. She watched the scene for a moment, keeping the expression on her face as merely curious as a young policeman exited the room, holding several small bags of evidence in his hand which he placed in a cardboard box resting on the trunk of his car.

Bags of evidence which they were clearly planning on using against Dean.

Tansy silently cursed her father in law for putting them in this situation in the first place. What the hell had the older man been thinking to leave the room in the state it was in? Any Hunter knew that you cleared the room of any evidence which could be damning before you checked out of it but clearly John had been too intent on performing his little running out trick to obey the rules. Hell he had already broken the cardinal one of leaving a hunt half way through and incomplete, why not just add this one as well.

She shook her head, promising herself that she would have some words to say to the older man when they finally located him before she made her self turn away from the scene in case the police spotted her and decided that she was showing too much interest in what was occurring.

"Let's go James" she remarked, smiling down at her son when he shifted in his chair, tilting his head back so he could see her, a wide smile coming to his face at the sight of her. She headed over to the reception area noticing with relief that the impala was gone from the spot where Dean had parked it the night before. Somehow Sam had managed to get it out of the car park and away from the motel without the police noticing him. How they missed the noise that Dean's baby made was beyond her but she certainly wasn't complaining. They needed all the luck they could get.

Tansy opened the reception door and pushed James in, heading over to the front desk. The same man who had been on duty the night before was still there, leaning against the surface and reading a newspaper.

"Hiya" she said. He glanced up, searching her face for a moment before a slow smile came to his face. The old man straightened with a look of recognition as he continued to stare at her.

"Hi" he replied thoughtfully. "You're the young lady staying in room seven aren't you?" he asked curiously, his eyes dropping away from her face to focus on the open guest book in front of him. "Grace Adams wasn't it?" he asked, Tansy nodded her head.

"I'm surprised you recognise me" she stated.

"Well of course, I never forget a face or a name of anyone who stays here" the man boasted. Tansy nodded, pretending to look impressed before she glanced over her shoulder through the glass door, speaking as she turned back to him.

"I'm sorry to bother you when you're busy" she remarked "But I've just got back from breakfast with my son and I couldn't help but notice that the place seems to be swarming with police officers suddenly. Has something happened here this morning? Is it safe for us to still stay here or should I look for another motel in the area?" she queried, making her eyes widening in a helpless look. She almost snorted when the man's expression softened as he shook his head at her.

Sometimes it really was too easy.

"There's no reason at all why you need to leave Ms Adams" he assured her "The police was currently investigating a string of missing people in the area and they believe that they've finally found the people responsible for it, they were staying right here at this very motel in room ten" he stated, looking offended at the fact that it had happened under his very nose and he had never known it. Tansy stared back, pretending to be shocked at the news.

"So the people responsible were staying here last night?" she asked watching as the man nodded his head.

"They made an arrest of a young man this very morning" he announced. "He came in late last night, covered head to foot in drying mud with another taller man with him. I should have realised right then and then that they were both trouble but it was only this morning when the Deputies came round asking routine questions about whether I had seen any suspicious characters that I put two and two together and remembered him. He had definitely seemed suspicious, I mean what could he have been doing to get into the state he was in?" he demanded. Tansy shook her head.

"I don't know" she confessed "I never saw anyone else arrive last night. I was asleep in my room and there was nothing strange happening when we left the motel to eat"

"Well don't you worry your pretty head about it Ms Adams, there's gonna be enough evidence to put both of them away for a very long time. I saw the room with my own eyes. The walls were covered in all this weird stuff and there were pictures of all the missing people stuck up. I wouldn't be surprised if the police found little trophies taken from the victims in there as well. I watch plenty of CSI, I know exactly how these people work." Tansy closed her eyes briefly, fighting the overwhelming urge to punch the man in the face, only the knowledge that he would probably have her arrested for assault stopped her. If he had just shut up then Dean would have been free.

"Yeah that is a relief to know" She forced her self to say before she turned back to James who was looking around the room with wide eyes. "I'd best get back to my room" she stated.

"I hope everything is acceptable for you in there?" The man called after her.

"Its fine thank you for asking" she said, pulling the door closed behind her and cutting off any answer he had made. Her eyes lingered on the police activity before she pushed the pushchair over to their room, opening the door up and slipping in, closing and locking it behind her. She unstrapped James, letting him out and passing him a few of his toys to keep him occupied.

There was only one thing she could do.

Picking up her phone she went through her contacts, stopping at the one she needed and pressing the connect button. She waited, breathing a sigh of relief when the phone was picked up with a distracted greeting.

"Aaron? It's Tansy, something's happened here. I'm gonna need a favour."

* * *

Author Note

**Thanks for reading!**


	19. Chapter 19

Reunion

By

Ava Brett

Disclaimer

**The characters of John, Sam and Dean Winchester, Deputy Jaffe and the Sheriff do not belong to me in any fashion whatsoever; they do however belong to the creator of supernatural which as you all know isn't me… it's Eric Kripke and I'm not him… not even born in the same country as him and also the wrong gender so yep not me!**

**The characters of Tansy and James Winchester however do belong to me so please do not use them without my permission.**

**As usual I am only using the characters for my own entertainment purposes and not for anything else**

Author Note

**I can't believe that this story has reached fifty reviews! I never expected it to, in fact I didn't expect reviews at all so this is amazing, exactly what I need considering the fact that I'm feeling incredibly down today.**

**This story is drawing to a close now, I can't believe it!**

**Nineteen chapters written and over seventy four thousands words posted… madness!**

**Anyway enjoy**

Overall Summary

**When Sam Winchester left for Stanford University to study law it never occurred to him that life for his brother Dean would go on without him, now his brother is back, needing help to locate their missing father but he isn't alone. Sam needs to figure out where he stands now and decide once and for all if he's a Winchester or not.**

Chapter Summary

**You better start talking boy…**

Overall Romances

**Dean Winchester/Tansy Winchester (OFC), Sam Winchester/Jessica Moore and Troy Squire/Amy Hein**

Romance for this chapter

**None mention specifically in this chapter but obviously there's always an undercurrent of Dean/Tansy in their chapters.**

* * *

Chapter Nineteen

* * *

**1****st**** November 20****05**

**09:35 AM**

**Interview room three**

**Jericho Police station**

**Jericho**

**California**

* * *

Dean Winchester's point of view

* * *

Dean leaned forward in his chair, resting his palms against the rough surface of the table and silently sighed to himself. He had been in that room for over an hour waiting for someone to come and see him. He knew it was normal police procedure designed to make the suspect in question uneasy but all it ever did to him was leave him feeling pissed off.

The journey to the station hadn't exactly been pleasant either. Deputy Jaffe clearly resented the fact that he had been so easily taken in by Dean's initial story in the first place and had made it perfectly clear by the way he had treated him, Slamming him hard against the hood of a car, barking his rights at him while making sure that the bracelets of his handcuffs were tight enough that they cut into the skin leaving angry marks behind. He had proceeded to throw Dean into the back of his car, driving him back to the station, his foot almost to the floor, in complete silence before hauling him out of the car and dragging him into the room he was currently in now. Dean was only surprised that he had bothered to take the handcuffs off.

Dean shifted on the chair, licking his lips as he absently began drumming a beat on the table with his fingers. He only hoped that Sam had managed to get out of the room and meet up with Tansy in the diner. He had complete faith in the pair of them; if anyone could come up with a plan to bust him out of the police station then it would be Sam and Tansy.

The door to the side of him opened attracting his attention long enough to see that he was being joined by the Sheriff who he had briefly seen on the bridge the day before. He was holding a large brown cardboard box in his hand, a box which Dean had no doubt was filled with blank pieces of paper to try and make out that they had loads of information on him. They must have thought he was an idiot or something to be taken in by such a well known trick. Dean had been careful to stay under the radar of any law enforcement office since he got married and he knew that they had nothing on him. Anything they did have would accidentally disappear every month, a benefit of the round table.

"So have you finally decided to play ball with us and tell us what your real name is boy?" The Sheriff demanded as he walked in and placed the box on the table, standing behind it and resting his hands lightly on it. Dean glanced down at his shiny name badge and looked back up, meeting the cold blue eyes with a raised eyebrow and a smile.

"I'll tell you exactly the same thing as I told your Deputies when they asked Sheriff Pierce. My name is Nugent, Ted Nugent" The sheriff's eyes narrowed at him.

"I'm not quite sure that you're aware of how much trouble you're in here boy" Dean shrugged his shoulder's glancing down to examine his hands.

"What sort of trouble are we talking about here? The good kind of trouble? The not so good type or should I simply start squealing like a pig trouble" Dean questioned, looking up with a bored expression on his face. The Sheriff's chubby face reddened with anger, making Dean wonder whether the man was going to have a heart attack, that would be the last thing he needed at that moment in time.

"Boy you had the faces of ten missing men stuck to the walls of that hotel room, if you had an ounce of sense in your head then you'd soon realise that if you want to ever see the outside world again then you'd better start cooperating with us. These cases are open and under investigation and you are now my number one suspect in this case. With the pictures and all the satanic mumbo jumbo my men found in that room it shouldn't be difficult to put you away but if you talk to me then I can put in a good word with you with the DAs office, you're still young, they could still go easy on you if you play ball and tell us what you know."

"Get that speech from a cop show did you?" Dean remarked with a shake of his head before he sat forward in his chair, interlocking his fingers together as he fixed the Sheriff with a steady look, a look he held until the Sheriff shifted uncomfortable on the spot, his eyes flickering away from Dean's, only then did Dean continue speaking, his tone pleasant as though they were discussing a ball game. "You see this is how I view it, you've got absolutely nothing tying me to any of the cases, you're just hoping to pin them on me and hoping that I'll crack because I'm in a police station and tell you what you want to hear. What it comes down to is this. You've got jack shit. Any jury will see that I was barely three years old in 1982 when the first man went missing and not only that but I haven't been in the area for any of the disappearances, that with the fact you have no forensics means that I'm gonna walk out of here a free innocent man pretty soon because that's what I am. Innocent. Let me also point out that you found all of this stuff in room ten. I was staying in room thirteen and had never stepped foot in room ten. I know you guys are desperate but this is ridiculous even by cop standards."

"The room might not have belonged to you but it did belong to your partner who brought it out for the month. I know you've got partners boy, probably two considering my men saw you with one of them yesterday when you were at the bridge discussing the case with them. Why did you go there? Was it to revisit the scene of the crime so you could relive it or were you simply there to see what we had found out? I know that the man who had room ten was an older man in his fifties, that would make him old enough to be responsible for the first disappearance and he was in the area the night Troy disappeared as well. What was it? Did he teach you everything you know so you could continue his work when he was gone? Is it just here you've targeted or have you targeted other areas as well. I'm not an unfair man, it's easy to see that he was the one who started it, and it's even possible to argue that you were roped into it against your will, too young to know any better. So tell me Dean" he remarked, a triumphant gleam coming to his eyes. "Does this belong to him?"

Dean froze when the sheriff reached into the box and pulled out an old leather journal, tossing in onto the surface of the table directly in front of Dean so it was facing him. Dean stared down at the worn brown cover feeling as though he couldn't breathe, his fingers tightened on each other until it was painful, the sensation helping him to focus.

How the hell did the Sheriff have his father's journal? The older man never went anywhere without it.

He glanced up as the Sheriff moved slowly round the table, perching him self on the edge of it, his cold blue eyes fixed knowingly on Dean. Dean forced his face into an expressionless look as he met the gaze head on.

"I'm assuming that Dean is your real name. You see I had a little look through this journal when my men brought it in with the other evidence from the room. I didn't understand much in it because everything in there is pretty much crazy talk but I do know what these are, the question is do you Dean?"

Dean leaned slightly forward as the Sheriff opened the journal flipping through the pages until he stopped on one which was blank of everything except his name and a bunch of coordinates with a thick black circle drawn around them as though his Dad was trying to emphasis the importance of them. "Now you're gonna sit there until you start talking to me and I swear to God almighty above that everything which leaves your mouth had better be the truth or I promise you that I'll make you wish you had never been born."

Dean glanced down at the page, eyes lingering over his father's last message before he looked back up at the Sheriff and smiled.

Two could play this game.

* * *

Author Note

**Thanks for reading!**


	20. Chapter 20

Reunion

By

Ava Brett

Disclaimer

**The characters of John, Sam and Dean Winchester do not belong to me in any fashion whatsoever; nor do the characters of Joseph and Constance Welch. They do however belong to the creator of supernatural which as you all know isn't me… it's Eric Kripke and I'm not him… not even born in the same country as him and also the wrong gender so yep not me!**

**The characters of Tansy and James Winchester however do belong to me so please do not use them without my permission.**

**As usual I am only using the characters for my own entertainment purposes and not for anything else**

Author Note

**Twenty chapters done and I'm finally in the last stretch home!**

**I can't believe it, I never though when I started this project that it would end up being so long or that people would read it and enjoy it. Every time I get a review for this story I go into shock a little bit. I can't tell you how much each and every review or favourite or follow means to me!**

**So some good news has come from this weekend's agony. Not only have I just had an awesome date but I was able to sit down and work on Wendigo yesterday which of course is book two in the round table saga (This is book one) and I've got up to ten chapters written! Still plenty more to go but it will be extremely handy when its time to post it!**

**Anyway enough from me, I hope you enjoy the below chapter **

Overall Summary

**When Sam Winchester left for Stanford University to study law it never occurred to him that life for his brother Dean would go on without him, now his brother is back, needing help to locate their missing father but he isn't alone. Sam needs to figure out where he stands now and decide once and for all if he's a Winchester or not.**

Chapter Summary

**Mr Welch do you know what a woman in white is…**

Overall Romances

**Dean Winchester/Tansy Winchester (OFC), Sam Winchester/Jessica Moore and Troy Squire/Amy Hein**

Romance for this chapter

**Mentions of Sam Winchester/Jessica Moore, Dean Winchester/Tansy Winchester and Joseph Welch/Constance Welch.**

* * *

Chapter Twenty

* * *

**1st**** November 2005**

**10:30 AM**

**Thirty Four Water Bell Road**

**Outskirts of Jericho**

**California **

* * *

Sam Winchester's point of view

* * *

Sam glanced down at the map in his hand before he looked back towards the old wooden sign to the side of the road. According to the information he had discovered the night before; this was most definitely the place where Joseph Welch had moved to after Constance's death. Breathing in noisily, Sam twisted in his seat glancing behind him to make sure there was no oncoming traffic before he hit the indicator, twisting the steering wheel and turned into the small dirt road which according to the sign would lead him directly to Water Bell Road.

He pulled the impala into the drive way of number thirty four and killed the engine, grabbing the piece of paper which he had written the address on and stuffing it into the pocket of his jacket before he left the car, slamming the door close behind him and automatically locking it. Dean would kill him if he allowed his baby to be stolen due to his own carelessness.

He glanced around him, eyes automatically lingering on places which could be used as good defensive positions before he stared up at the small one storey house in front of him. It looked as though it needed some work done on it though somehow he doubted that the man who owned the place particularly cared. Shaking his head he buried his hands into his pockets and walked up to the screen door, glancing back once at the gleaming car, his thoughts automatically swinging to his brother.

God he hoped that Dean was okay and that Tansy could get him out of there like she seemed to believe she could.

Sam breathed out, reaching up and knocking on the door, glancing around him again as he waited for a response to his knock. He didn't have long to wait, the door opened revealing an old man who looked to be in his mid sixties; he squinted at Sam in the bright sunlight with a questioning look on his face.

"Can I help you?" he asked curiously. Sam smiled, his eyes glancing down taking in the dirty white wife beater and plaid shirt the man was wearing, clearly this was a man who lived alone, Jessica would have kicked his ass if he ever turned up dressed like the man in front of him. He raised his eyes to meet the dark eyes watching him and spoke, keeping his tone polite and friendly.

"I hope you can sir, I'm sorry to bother you at home but I'm looking for a Joseph Welch? I was told that he was currently living here?" the man nodded at him slowly, a slight suspicious look coming to his eyes as he looked closer at Sam.

"I'm Joseph Welch" he responded after a slight pause, he was clearly trying to figure out why Sam was looking for him.

"That's great news" Sam said keeping the friendly smile on his face. "I was hoping you would be in. My name is Tom; would it be possible for me to ask you some questions?" Joseph frowned at the comment.

"Are you a reporter like that other man who came here?" he demanded. Sam blinked before he tilted his head to the side.

"Another man?" he asked, Joseph nodded glancing back into the house before he stepped out of the door forcing Sam to take a step back. He watched as Joseph pulled the screen door to behind him. "He said his name was Roger and he was doing an article on the Sylvania Bridge?"

"Yes, Roger is my partner at the paper" Sam said, "Did he happen to look like this?" he reached into his pocket and pulled out the photo which he had taken from the mirror in room ten the night before. He passed it over to Joseph when the older man held out his hand for it, watching as he looked down at the picture with a thoughtful frown."

"That could easily be him" Joseph remarked with a nod as he handed the photo back to Sam, leading Sam away from the house and down the driveway. "He was a lot older then he was in that picture though, more care worn and grey, like he had a lot of pressure on him or something if you know what I mean?" Sam nodded, swallowing deeply. He knew exactly what Joseph meant.

"When did Roger come to visit you exactly?" Sam asked curiously, putting the photo back into his pocket.

"He came out here three or four days ago in the late afternoon, I had just got back from my shift at Dave's garage in town" he remarked waving a hand in the direction of Jericho. He sniffed, sticking his hands into his pockets, his shoulders hunching over in a clear defensive position. "He told me that he was a reporter with the newspaper and that the article was about the bridge, but the questions he was asking me didn't seem right you know? What kind of man asks the questions he asked me if he's just writing about a damn bridge? It don't make sense to me."

"I'm sorry if he offended you or caused you any distress Mr Welch. Roger is just extremely dedicated to our articles, he likes making sure that we have any aspect of it completely right before he submits it to our editor" Sam said "We're actually working the piece together, I'm assuming that the questions he was asking you was about your late wife Constance?" Sam asked keeping his voice sympathetic. Joseph looked towards him with a sharp look.

"He wasn't just asking me questions about Constance boy; he was asking me where I buried her. What the hell has that to do with your article?"

Sam silently cursed his father in his head for coming up with such a pathetic excuse as an article about a bridge; surely he could have come up with a better one then that.

"I'm sorry; I understand that this is probably painful for you. An aspect of the article is discussing people who have used it to take their own lives" he said softly. "I just need to confirm with you the details of where Constance is buried so we can have it correct. It's important to us to have every fact right especially over something like this."

"So what you're saying is that only do you want me to go through this line of questioning again but you're also going to drag Constance death into it?" Joseph demanded a look of disgust on his face. Sam remained silent meeting the suddenly hostile gaze focused on him before Joseph Welch suddenly sighed, the fight leaving him causing his shoulders to slump down.

"What does it even matter anymore" he said, his voice low as though he was speaking to him self "Connie is gone and she ain't coming back" he sucked in a breathe and looked at Sam. "I was gonna bury her in the local cemetery with the rest of our family. We got a plot there you see but I couldn't because of the circumstances of her death, the church aren't real fond of burying suicide victims especially back when this happened so I buried her in a plot behind our old house. She had always like the garden there you see so it made sense to me, if I couldn't bury her where she deserved then I'd bury her where she was happiest."

"Your old house?" Sam asked. Joseph nodded.

"The one on Breckenbridge Road, its five miles from the Sylvania Bridge"

"Why did you move away from there if it was the place you buried your wife?" Sam asked, glancing down at him. Joseph slowed to a stop and turned to look at Sam, a scornful look on his face.

"You can tell you aren't a father" he stated flatly. "There was no way in hell that I was going to stay in that house. My children died in that house boy, no father would be able to stay if it had happened to their own child. There's too many memories attached and memories can be deadly at times if you allow them to be" Joseph said, a haunted look coming to his face. Sam glanced away before he spoke.

"Mr Welch did you ever remarry after Constance's death?" he asked.

"No way" Joseph replied shaking his head slightly. "What you got to understand is that Connie was the love of my life. She was like a ray of sunshine to me, everything was better when she was around. She was the prettiest thing I'd ever seen with this beautiful smile that would have stolen your heart if you had seen it. Everyone loved Constance; she didn't have an enemy in the world."

"So your marriage together was a happy one then from the sound of it?" Sam queried, his eyes narrowing slightly when Joseph hesitated, his eyes moving to the side for a moment before he turned back to Sam with a determined look and nodded.

"We were very happy together especially once Lucas and Rosalyn were born, everything was perfect until-" his voice trailed off as he licked his lips and looked away.

"That should be all that I need from you, thank you for sparing the time to talk to me Mr Welch, it's much appreciated and a big help as well."

"You're welcome" Joseph responded, turning away and walking back towards the house. Sam took a few steps towards the impala, reaching into his pocket and retrieving the keys, he stopped, fiddling with them for a moment before he turned back to Joseph Welch.

"I'm sorry Mr Welch there's just one more thing I'd like to ask you. Have you ever heard of the legend of the woman in white?" he asked.

"A what now?" Joseph called back turning to face him with a look of confusion on his face.

"A woman in white" Sam repeated, glancing to the side of him before he looked back to the confused older man in front of him. "Sometimes they're also known as a weeping woman?" Joseph remained silent, merely watching him with a raised eyebrow, spurring Sam into continuing. "It's a ghost story you see so its possible that you haven't heard of it before, some people don't pay attention to the old stories and legends though in this case its not so much a story as a phenomenon" he said walking back towards Joseph, still speaking. "You see these women in white are spirits of the supernatural kind. They have been sighted over the centuries in dozens of different places; they've been in Hawaii, Mexico, they've been across several countries in Europe. There have even been some recent reports of sightings in Arizona. All these women are different from each other you see, they aren't the same woman" Sam pointed out stopping directly in front of Joseph Welch, close enough that he could reach out and touch him if he wanted to. "But all these different women share a similar story to each other linking them together and damning them to the same fate"

"I don't know what you're talking about boy but I don't got time to be listening to your spouting nonsense at me. Some of us have to go and get ready for real work" Joseph stated bluntly, turning and walking away from Sam. Sam hesitated one moment before his eyes narrowed and he followed him.

"You see Mr Welch when these women were still alive their husbands, the men who swore before God to be faithful, cheated on them" he said softly watching when Joseph stopped in his tracks. "Now these vows meant something to those women and they reacted. Suffering from temporary insanity brought on by this betrayal they ended up killing their own children" Sam forced him self to meet the older man's eyes when he turned to face him again, his face drained of all colour. "When they realised what they had done they couldn't bear it and each and every one of them ended up killing themselves in some fashion. So now their spirits are cursed and they are unable to move on. Instead they end up walking any back road or waterway that they can find. They search and they search until they find a man who has the potential in them to be unfaithful. I don't know how they do it, maybe the man has a past of it or maybe being a spirit gives them the power to see into the man's very soul but it always ends up the same way. They kill the man and his body is never seen again. Exactly like what's happening right here in Jericho."

"So what?" Joseph demanded, his voice shaking with repressed emotions. "You think that your little story is true or something? You think that all these missing men have something to do with Constance? What are you saying? That's she's one of these women in white you're talking about, you god damn smartass!"

"You tell me Mr Welch, were you unfaithful to your wife when she was alive?" Sam asked his voice gentle as he waited for the other man to speak. There was a part of him which hated doing this; it was clear the man in front of him had suffered enough but he had to be absolutely clear that Constance was a woman in white and that their father's hunch was correct. If they were wrong and it was something else then it could mean one of them getting hurt and Sam couldn't live with himself if it was his brother who injured all because he didn't check this out fully.

"I mean… maybe… maybe I made some stupid mistakes when I was younger but no matter what I did, Connie would never have killed her own children, she loved them more then anything in this world, me included. She lived for those children, she wouldn't have killed them. Now it's your turn to listen to me. You get the hell off my property and you keep your poisonous opinion to yourself and you don't ever come back here again. If I see you or your partner's face here again I'll pump the pair of you with bullets, you hear me boy. I will kill you!"

Sam watched as the older man's face shook, his dark eyes sparkling in the bright light with unshed tears before he turned and walked away from Sam, his back ramrod straight.

Sam sighed, shaking his head feeling like a jackass as he turned and headed back to the impala, unlocking the door and climbing into it. He turned the engine on, allowing the familiar sound of it to sooth him as he watched Joseph Welch enter his small house. He glanced to the empty passenger seat wishing that his brother was there to make a comment that would make him laugh and stop him feeling like such a bastard for what he had just done. Of course that wasn't going to happen while Dean was still at the police station being questioned.

Sam blinked and reversed off the drive way and into the street before putting his foot on the accelerator and heading towards Jericho.

He fished out his mobile from his pocket and went to his recent contact list, selecting Tansy's name and hitting the connect button.

"Sam" she answered after four rings. "How did it go with Joseph Welch? Did you find out from him where he buried Constance?" she asked. Sam nodded forgetting that she couldn't see him.

"Yep he buried her at the back of their old house in Breckenbridge road and get this according to Mr Welch there is exactly five miles between their home and the bridge just like Dean said there would be."

"It makes sense that she would be haunting the road which she had to walk down to reach the bridge" Tansy said absently.

"Have you had any luck in getting Dean out of the police station yet?" Sam asked.

"Not yet Sam" she responded "I've got to wait until the right moment. Don't worry though there's no way in hell I'm going to sleep tonight without Dean at my side" she assured him, an undercurrent of amusement to her voice which he hadn't heard directed at him before. "I've got a plan in motion and if for some reason it fails then I've got the big guns on stand by ready to sweep in and sort the mess out, trust me when I say the Jericho police force won't know what hit them. No one gets to keep Dean in ever, trust me on that."

"Who are the big guns exactly and why would they care if Dean was in a police station?" Sam demanded curiously, raising an eyebrow when Tansy laughed down the phone at him.

"You'll find out soon enough I'm sure Sam" she replied before she turned serious and changed the subject. "What are your plans now then? Are you heading straight to the Welch's house to find Constance's body or are you returning to Jericho first?" she asked.

"I'm heading straight to the Welch's house, I'm gonna finish this once and for all. Besides I highly doubt I'm welcome in main Jericho at the moment. It probably still is better for me to stay out of sight for the time being."

"Yeah I think so" Tansy answered. "There definitely seems to be more police patrols on the street and they definitely seem to be searching for someone, most likely you" she said with a sigh. "I was going to speak to one of them to see whether they would tell me anything but I'm thinking its time I got a rental car instead, how long will it take you to get to the Welch's house from where you are now?" she asked. Sam glanced at the watch on his wrist with a thoughtful frown.

"It took me just under two hours to get here from Jericho; the traffic seems slightly heavier coming in so probably two hours or there about I'd say."

"Ok, me and Dean shall meet you outside the Welch's house in two hours then, see you soon Sam" she remarked before hanging up the phone.

Sam glanced at it before he threw it on the passenger seat and pressed his foot down on the accelerator.

* * *

Author Note

**Thanks for reading **


	21. Chapter 21

Reunion

By

Ava Brett

Disclaimer

**Characters which belong to Eric Kripke the creator of Supernatural who feature in this chapter are:**

**John Winchester, Sam Winchester, Dean Winchester, Sheriff Pierce, Constance Welch**

**Character who belong to me Ava Brett who are featured in this chapter are:**

**Tansy Winchester, James Winchester, Policeman Higgins, Aaron, Abbie and Caitlin (I don't want to give their surnames away yet)**

**Please do not use any of my characters without first asking my permission.**

**As usual I am merely using these characters for my own entertainment purposes and I make no money from this at all. It's all for fun **

Author Note

**Here's the next chapter for you.**

**I always enjoy writing scenes between Dean and Tansy just because I get to drop little hints about what they were both doing when John was off doing his own thing and Sam was at Stanford because trust me when I say that they were both extremely busy! It be book number two which will begin to reveal things a great deal more.**

**I also like writing the love between them because its always there, they just haven't really been able to show it because there's always someone there watching…**

**Anyway please enjoy **

Overall Summary

**When Sam Winchester left for Stanford University to study law it never occurred to him that life for his brother Dean would go on without him, now his brother is back, needing help to locate their missing father but he isn't alone. Sam needs to figure out where he stands now and decide once and for all if he's a Winchester or not.**

Chapter Summary

**Look we can do this the easy way or the hard way, it's up to you…**

Overall Romances

**Dean Winchester/Tansy Winchester (OFC), Sam Winchester/Jessica Moore and Troy Squire/Amy Hein**

Romance for this chapter

**Dean Winchester / Tansy Winchester**

* * *

Chapter Twenty one

* * *

**1****st**** November 2005**

**11:30 AM**

**Interview number three**

**Jericho Police Station**

**Jericho**

**California**

* * *

Dean Winchester's Point of view

* * *

"Look we can keep going over this same thing over and over again but my answer to you is still exactly the same as it was two hours ago. This-" Dean remarked, tapping his finger against the page with the coordinates written on it "is my high school locker combination, that's it I'm afraid" he stated, crossing his arms and resting them on the surface of the table as he glanced to the side of him, a bored look planted on his face.

The Sheriff had eventually given in and taken the free seat next to him once he realised that him perched over Dean, watching him wasn't having the desired effect he wanted from him. He had then proceeded to question him about the page over and over again, each time phrasing his question slightly differently as though he was hoping that the slight change would be enough to make him slip up and reveal something which he didn't want to. Dean almost felt sorry for him, clearly the Sheriff was used to dealing with low life scum who dealt mainly in petty theft and jaywalking. His methods probably worked fine on them but he clearly had never been faced with someone like Dean before.

"Why would you write your locker combo in this particular journal?" the Sheriff demanded, picking up the book from the table and flicking through the pages, his gaze fixed on Dean. "Look at the rest of this mumbo jumbo which is in it, your explanation makes no sense, if it was a locker combination why write your own name above it? Surely you would have known what the hell it was when you wrote it." Dean shrugged his shoulder.

"I needed paper and the journal happened to be near by. Strangely enough journals tend to have paper hence why I used it. As for the name, well I would hardly want someone ripping the page out thinking it was nothing now would I? That would hardly help me remember what it was." Dean remarked watching as the Sheriff sighed, lifting his eyes to the ceiling as though he was praying for some heavenly intervention to help him out. The room was chilled, no doubt an attempt to put him on edge, but he found it relaxing. Dean had always preferred cold weather to warm anyway, unlike Sam who was the complete opposite to him. He glanced at the sheriff's sweaty face and raised an eyebrow as he waited for the man to say something to him.

"Are we really going to be playing this game all night Dean?" The Sheriff asked "Because I can hold you for seventy two hours without charging you. I'll keep you on this chair all damn night if that what it takes" he snapped. Dean shrugged again.

"Go ahead" he said calmly, "It's not like I have anywhere I need to be Sheriff Pierce"

"Dean I-"Sheriff Pierce began, his eyes narrowing at Dean who merely looked back thoughtfully. The arrival of a Deputy at the door attracted both of their attention.

"Sheriff, we just got a call through from a distressed citizen, apparently there's been gun shots fired over at Whitford Road, first response are already on their way but they might require back up from us" The Sheriff nodded looking towards Dean and searching his face carefully before he spoke.

"Do you need to use the bathroom?" he demanded. Dean blinked, his eyes flickering away from him as he tried to figure out where the sudden change in conversation had come from.

"Nope I don't need a piss" he replied.

"Well that's good, the last thing I would want is for you to piss yourself boy" The sheriff remarked climbing to his feet and pulling his handcuffs off of his belt. He moved round the back of Dean, grabbing his wrist and fitting the metal bracelet around it, closing it tight before he attached the second bracelet to a handle on a locked drawer on the desk. "You sit tight here until I returned and maybe when I do eventually remember to come and check on you, you'll be more willing to talk to me" he commented, straightening and heading to the door. He glanced back once more at Dean with a triumphant smile before he exited the room, barking orders at his Deputies as he closed the door behind him.

Dean shook his head in pity before he glanced down at the handcuff now encircling his wrist, he pulled at it lightly but it was pretty clear that it wasn't going to break off of him. He sighed, breathing out as he leaned back against his chair, his eyes dropping to his Dad's journal. A glint caught his eyes causing a small smile to come to his mouth as he reached out and plucked the paperclip from the journal.

Clearly small town cops really were as stupid as all the TV shows made them out to be.

He opened the paperclip up and inserted it into the lock, moving it around as he slowly began picking it. His mind drifted back to what the Deputy had said. Shot fired on Whitford Road. Whitford Road which he knew from the map they had looked at the night before was all the way out of town in the opposite direction from the Sylvania Bridge. Clearly his wife had grown tired of their separation and decided to do something about it, the whole thing had Tansy's name written all over it, right down to the call from the distressed citizen. Something which he knew from experience she had down to a fine art.

"There we go" he muttered to him self when the sound of a click broke the silence in the room. Dean reached down and pulled the handcuff off of him, leaving it dangling as he came to his feet, rubbing at his wrist absently before he stretched out his muscles.

It was time to get the hell out of there.

He picked up his Dad's journal and shoved it in the waistband of his jeans, covering it with his shirt before he headed to the door, keeping to the side of it as he peered through the window, ducking back instantly when he noticed there were still one or two Deputies left in the station who were preparing to leave. His wife would be pissed off if he fucked up after all the effort she had gone through to give him an empty police station to work with.

He breathed out quietly glancing around the room to see if there was anything worth taking from there but there was nothing. He glanced back out the window smiling when he saw that the room was now completely empty of personnel. They hadn't even bothered to leave one member of staff behind to man the station from what he could see.

He slowly opened the door, closing it silently behind him before he glanced around him. Still empty. He headed down the corridor towards the back exit which he had noticed when they had brought him in.

"Freeze!" Dean stopped, closing his eyes briefly. "Hands where I can see them" he pulled a face, putting his hands slowly up in the air. "Now turn, nice and quiet like, I don't want any funny business from you" Dean slowly turned to see himself faced with a young man dressed in a police uniform. He looked no older then Sam and although the hand holding the gun was steady there was a look in his eyes which told Dean that this was the first time the man had held a gun pointing at someone.

"Hi" Dean said "I was just looking for the bathroom, could you point me in the right direction to it?" the policeman frowned slightly, his gaze flickering down to take Dean in before they met his again and hardened.

"Bullshit" he said "You're the man that was brought in for questioning earlier in line with the disappearances, you're meant to be in interview room three. The Sheriff told me about you, he told me to keep an eye on you."

"Did he now" Dean remarked, still holding his hands in the air. "Well that's nice of him to care so much."

"The Sheriff is a great man" the policeman stated stubbornly. Dean's eyes flickered to the man's name badge before he looked back up at him, meeting his eyes with a steady look.

"I'm sure he is Police Officer Higgins and I'm sure you're a good guy as well but this is how it's going to be. I'm leaving now, I've places to go and people who I want to see a whole lot more then I want to see you so we can do this the easy way or we can do this the hard way. The easy way is you lowering that gun, I'll then lower my hands, we both turn away from each other and we both pretend that we never saw each other right now and I had simply disappeared when you went to check on me, you had no idea how or when I did it."

"That's not going to happen" Policeman Higgins stated, his eyes narrowing.

"Of course it isn't" Dean replied "You guys never take the easy way out which means it's the hard way just like normal."

"I'm the one holding the gun here" the man snapped "All that's gonna happen is you are gonna walk right back into that interview room, sit back in that chair and I'm gonna lock you in until the Sheriff returns. How's that for an easy plan."

"Yeah, I think I prefer mine more" Dean said, his eyes flickering to the clock. "You know what I find most interesting about new cops on the force?" he asked watching as the man frowned but remained silent. "They never teach them the basics at the academy, things such as this-"

Dean moved, reaching forward and grasping the gun, twisting into the man before he could react. He elbowed him hard in the gut, winding him and quickly wrestled the gun out of his grip and kicked his feet out from under him sending him sprawling to the floor. He stepped back holding the gun at the man who stared up at him, his eyes wide as he stayed motionless, one arm covering his stomach protectively. "It's nothing personal you see Higgins; I've just got something to do. For future reference, next time don't stand so close to the guy you've got a gun pointed at because it makes it easier to take it from you. The next guy who does it, isn't going to be me; they'll probably kill you instead"

"Instead of what?" Higgins demanded.

"This" Dean said punching Higgins hard round the face. The man dropped like a rock, out cold. Shaking his head, Dean kicked him lightly to make sure he was out before moved around him, bending down and lifting him up from under the arms, dragging him across the floor and dumping him interview room three. He quickly took the man's gun belt off, stuffing the gun back in it before he patted him down, taking the keys and glancing down at them, luckily for him Policeman Higgins labelled his keys. He glanced once more at the man. "As I said no hard feelings, I just can't have you getting in the way" he commented to the unconscious man.

He locked the door after him and hurried towards the exit, holding the gun belt in his hand. This time he wasn't stopped as he exited through the fire door. He lifted his face to the sky, taking a deep breathe and took a second to enjoy the sun on his skin before he moved to the edge of the building. Climbing down the fire exit he jumped to the ground. He walked down the alley way, pulling the journal from his waistband and replacing it with the gun before he threw the belt into the dumpster to the side of him.

He stopped at the end of the alley way and glanced around him casually. His eyes focusing on the red car parked across from the station on the other side of the street. A smile came to his face as he quickly jogged over to it, moving round the back and slipped in the passenger seat, turning and grinning at Tansy.

"Miss me much?" he demanded raising his eyebrows at her. Tansy rolled her eyes and glanced at her watch.

"What took you so long exactly?" she asked curiously "I was beginning to think you wouldn't make it out of there before they all came back" Dean snorted.

"Please Tans, this is me we're talking about" he said. "I just ran into a lone policeman who I had to take care of first that's all" he remarked pulling the gun out and placing it in the glove compartment, he turned back to her. "You didn't answer my question you know."

Tansy reacted, twisting in her seat so she could grab the back of his neck, pulling him to her as she pressed her lips against his in a fervent kiss, Dean reacted reaching up and framing her face in his hands, his tongue moving lightly against her lower lip until her mouth opened allowing him entry. She moaned lightly, her fingers flexing against his skin before she moved back. Her face flushed as she stared at him.

"As much as I'd like to continue, we're kinda sitting outside the police station you've just broken out of. It might be an idea to get the hell out of here and continue that later on."

"Yeah good idea" Dean remarked watching as she turned the key in the ignition and hit her indicator, easing them onto the main road traffic.

Dean glanced back, his eyes softening when he saw James fast asleep in his car seat, his hand wrapped tightly around his blue elephant.

"Has he been asleep long?" he asked Tansy, who glanced at him briefly before focusing back on the road. Traffic was surprisingly heavy considering the time it was.

"Ten minutes or so" she stated "I'm hoping he'll sleep through until this is over with."

"Okay" Dean said "Fill me in, what's happened while I've been gone?" he demanded curiously.

"Well you might like to know that it was the owner of the motel who turned you into the police" she reported. "Apparently they came round this morning asking if anyone suspicious had turned up and he sent them straight over to you."

"Typical" he sighed shaking his head "And where exactly is Sam?" he asked.

"He's safe" she assured him. "He got to the diner earlier so I sent him to go and speak to Joseph Welch. I thought it would be best if he spent most of the day out of town. They saw him with you yesterday so they would have been looking for him as well."

"What did you do while he did that? Has he finished it?" Tansy nodded.

"He rang me a short time ago telling me he had just finished up. I dealt with your side of things while he did that. I spoke to Aaron just in case you weren't able to break out so he could be on standby to get his ass down here if need be. He wasn't best pleased when he heard that they were holding you but this is Aaron we're talking about; he always gets pissed when one of us is held by any form of law enforcement. I got through to Abbie as well, she's arranging for the Jericho police station to have a little computer virus implanted into their network which will delete all records to do with you from their systems. It will be like you were never there, very handy if you knocked out a policeman again"

"That wasn't my fault. I gave him the easy option first" Tansy snorted rolling her eyes.

"You know they never go for the easy option" she retorted.

"Yeah but at least I can say I gave them a chance" he replied with a wink, leaning over and kissing her on the temple.

"I guess you can" she replied flashing him an amused look.

"My favourite part was hearing about the distressed civilian phone call they received, the Deputy really brought into it Tans, if you ever stop hunting maybe you could go into voice acting. Clearly you've missed your calling in life" he commented, leaning back in his chair, keeping his gaze on her.

"I'll have you know that I was highly distressed" she pointed out, a small smile coming to her mouth "They took my husband away from me for no reason which meant that we missed having breakfast together. Of course I was pissed off." She stated, her hands tightening on the steering wheels until they went white. A serious expression coming to her face "You know I don't like it when they take you from me" she said quietly, reaching up and hooking a black curl behind her ear. She coughed "Did you at least manage to learn something from them while you were there?" she asked, changing the subject. Dean watched her for a second before he let it go.

"Tansy" Dean said softly waiting until she glanced over before he held up the journal. She stared at it, her eyes widening before they flickering up to meet his. "They had this in their possession."

Tansy hit the indicator pulling into a free space at the side of the road and hit her hazard lights. Her mouth parting as she stared at the journal.

"That's John's journal Dean, he never goes anywhere without that thing" she stated.

"I know but he left it behind this time. I think he left it for me, there's a page in there with my name and some coordinates."

"Coordinates to where though Dean?" she asked shaking her head as she pulled out of the space and began driving again "To him?"

"I've no idea, maybe" Dean remarked, sighing before he glanced around him, a frown coming to his face. "Where exactly are we heading to and why the hell are we in this crap mobile, where's my baby gone?" he demanded looking at her and catching the small smile which came to his wife's face.

"Your baby is fast asleep in the back seat" she said.

"I meant my other baby" Dean said rolling his eyes at her.

"I gave the keys to her to Sam so he could get to Joseph's house. I know you don't like anyone other then you or me driving it but it made sense. He's your brother and beside they probably already knew you drove the impala so I figured she was better out of the way with Sam. If I had driven it then it would have alerted them to me and I couldn't have that, not when there was James to consider." Dean nodded "As for where we are heading, we're off to Brackenbridge Road where the Welch's lived before Constance died. Sam is on his way to meet us there as we speak."

"What about James, we can't bring him in with us" Dean stated, Tansy shot him an annoyed look.

"I'm dropping you off Dean and then I'm going to watch over him. I won't let her get our baby and besides she's a woman in white. She's not interested in babies or women. She's only interested in men. Me and James will be fine because she'll ignore us like we're not there because to her we aren't there. You know me love, I'd never put James in any risk."

Dean breathed out noisily before he nodded.

"I know" he said quietly.

"Good" she replied, reaching out and tangling their hands together for a moment, Dean lifted it to his mouth, kissing her knuckle, giving it a light squeeze before she took her hand back placing it on the steering wheel again.

"I'm going to need to borrow your mobile to make a call" he said. Tansy glanced at him.

"Didn't you manage to get them both back?" she demanded, sighing when Dean shook his head. "Caitlin is going to kill you" she remarked. "This means she going to have to scramble both phones and you know that takes time. Not to mention that she's now going to have to send you a new one" she shook her head before sighing "It's in my jean pocket" she said, smiling at the look that came to his face as he reached over and slowly worked it out from her jeans, stealing a quick kiss as he did.

"See this is one of the reasons I love you so much" he said flipping her phone open and glancing at her. "Let's just hope Sam is nearly there so we can gank this bitch once and for all."

* * *

Author Note

**Thanks for taking the time to read!**


	22. Chapter 22

Reunion

By

Ava Brett

Disclaimer

**Characters which belong to Eric Kripke the creator of Supernatural who feature in this chapter are:**

**John Winchester, Sam Winchester, Dean Winchester, Constance Welch, Constance's children**

**Characters that belong to me Ava Brett who are featured in this chapter are:**

**Tansy Winchester and James Winchester**

**Please do not use any of my characters without first asking my permission.**

**As usual I am merely using these characters for my own entertainment purposes and I make no money from this at all. It's all for fun **

Author Note

**So here we are at chapter twenty two!**

**Good times, this was possibly the hardest chapter to write but hopefully you'll enjoy it! We're in the home straight now!**

**Yay!**

Overall Summary

**When Sam Winchester left for Stanford University to study law it never occurred to him that life for his brother Dean would go on without him, now his brother is back, needing help to locate their missing father but he isn't alone. Sam needs to figure out where he stands now and decide once and for all if he's a Winchester or not.**

Chapter Summary

**I'm taking you home Bitch…**

Overall Romances

**Main Romances**

**Dean Winchester/Tansy Winchester (OFC) and Sam Winchester/Jessica Moore **

**Mentioned Romances**

**Troy Squire/Amy Hein, Joseph Welch/Constance Welch, John Winchester / Mary Winchester and unrequited Troy Squire / Constance Welch**

Romance for this chapter

**Dean Winchester / Tansy Winchester**

* * *

Chapter Twenty Two

* * *

**1st**** November 2005**

**12:45 PM**

**Centennial Highway**

**Jericho**

**California**

* * *

Sam Winchester's Point of view

* * *

Sam reached forward, glancing down at the radio controller searching for a station which would play something which had been released past the 1980's, silently cursing his brother when he realised that every station had been tuned to the same one. Rolling his eyes he looked back towards the empty road in front of him, wondering where the hell all the traffic was. He had expected to at least come across one or two cars but there had been nothing, just Sam alone on the road, tapping his fingers against the steering wheel in time to yet another seventies rock classic.

A suddenly sharp noise caught his attention. Frowning he glanced towards the passenger seat surprised to see that his mobile was flashing at him indicating he was receiving a call. He picked it up and glanced at the screen, raising a surprised eyebrow when he saw his sister in law's name; somehow he had thought they had said everything to each other earlier. Shrugging his shoulders he hit the connect button bringing the phone to his ear and speaking.

"Hey Tansy, what's up, everything okay with you?"

"Yeah I'd say she's more then okay now Sammy boy" Dean answered, his voice sounding amused over the phone line. Sam couldn't help the wide grin which covered his face at the familiar sound of his brother's voice. He had been more worried about him then he had been willing to admit even to him self.

"So you say" Sam responded, reaching out and turning the volume of the radio down so he could hear Dean clearer. "So how did she manage to bust your ass out of jail then? Do they even know you're gone yet?" Sam asked curiously, adjusting the phone so it was in a more comfortable position.

"One guard knows I'm gone" Dean admitted. "But considering the fact he was out cold and locked in an interview room with no phone, when I left I'm thinking we're going to be fairly safe for a while. As for the other cops, Tansy rang the station claiming to be a distressed citizen reporting gun fire on the opposite side of town from where we need to be. They all went flying out the door, I guess with a small town like this they'll take whatever they can in the way of excitement. Still it does mean that we have a clear window for a short time to find Constance and burn the bitch!"

"That was a smart move" Sam admitted

"Yeah well what can I tell ya Sammy, I married a smart woman" Dean replied back, a smug note to his voice which made Sam roll his eyes before he replied.

"Not so much if she married you dude" he said, grinning at the outraged noise Dean made. "Well I suppose it's a blessing that at least one of you is smart"

"Yeah you're so getting a punch for remark when I next see you" Dean threatened, Sam raised an eyebrow when Dean's voice was suddenly muffled as though he was holding his hand over the speaking part. "Sorry about that Sam, I'm just gonna put you on loud speaker, Tansy wants to hear what is going on" he commented distractedly. There was the sound of Dean fiddling with the phone before Sam heard a click followed by his brother's questioning voice. "Can you still hear me Sam?" he asked.

"Yeah I can still hear you loud and clearly Dean" he remarked.

"Good" Dean said sounding satisfied "In that case, listen up because we've got to talk" Sam nodded his head forgetting that Dean couldn't see the action.

"Yeah you're telling me Dean" Sam stated. "So I managed to track down Joseph Welch's new house and I spoke to him. It turns out that Dad's theory about what she was is right. Constance Welch did become a woman in white after her death. He pretty much admitted to me that he cheated on her during their marriage. Clearly she found out about the affair somehow and lost her mind, killing their two children. She must have regained her sanity after she realised what she had done and killed her self. According to Joseph she lived those kids, worshipping the ground they walked on so it's no surprise that she killed her self when she realised what she had done to them. I'm guessing she drowned them in the bathtub. It would have been easy enough to hold their heads under the water, especially as they wouldn't have been expecting it." Sam finished breathing in deeply, his heart twisting in sympathy as he thought about what those two children must have gone through.

"What mother would be able to live knowing they killed their own child" Tansy remarked, speaking for the first time, a strange note to her voice. "To be driven that far, you would have to be insane to do it because trust me when I say it goes against every instinct a mother has when it comes to her child."

"Well she did it" Sam said "Instinct or not" There was a silence after his words. Sam could almost picture Dean and Tansy sharing a look with each other, perhaps looking back at in the backseat to make sure he was safe.

"What else did you find out from him Sammy?" Dean asked, the earlier teasing note gone from his voice.

"He told me where he had buried her" he stated.

"Where' that?" Dean demanded.

"In the garden behind his old house on Breckenridge Road, apparently he wanted to bury her in the church ground but-"

"The Priest wouldn't let him I bet" Tansy filled in when Sam's voice drifted off. "It makes sense; if they were practicing Catholics then no priest would allow her to be buried in their ground. She took her own life and there's no greater crime in the bible. They believe that only God can say when a life is due to be taken, suicide takes the option away."

"That was the impression I got from Joseph" Sam agreed. "She loved the garden so that was where he buried her; she shouldn't be too hard to find now we know where to look. I just don't get why Dad didn't do this, it should have been his next stop so he could burn the body."

"Yeah I know Sammy, that's what I-"Dean began to say but Sam ignored him, carrying on speaking thoughtfully, his face falling into a frown as his mind went to work on the puzzle.

"I just can't figure out why Dad didn't destroy her when he could have. I mean Joseph told me that he had already told Dad where the body was when he went there to see him though why the hell he told Dad anything is beyond me because Dad's cover story was lame. Makes you wonder whether his mind was already drifting from this job because I've never known him to be so sloppy when it comes to a cover story"

"Yeah probably Sammy but-"

"The point is that Dad could easily have gone and done it without any problems, it's not like the police were looking for him while he was here, hell they didn't even consider him a suspect until this morning when they saw the stuff in room ten."

"Jesus Christ Sammy, will you just shut up and listen to me for once. I'm trying to tell you something. Dad didn't destroy Constance's corpse because he up and left Jericho before he could. It wouldn't surprise me if he saw or heard something on the way back from Joseph Welch's house. Maybe he got a phone call or something, whatever it was sent him running, running without coming back to the motel. I'm guessing he literally drove out of Jericho straight away. He is gone Sam and he has no intention on coming back to this town, probably ever."

"No way Dean, he's gotta be coming back" Sam answered, his eyes narrowing on the empty road in front of him. "I mean look at the way he left the motel room for God sake. There's no way in hell that Dad would have left everything the way it was if he wasn't planning on coming back. He would have known that the owner would eventually have come looking and he couldn't have known that we would come looking for him either. How many freaking lectures have we endured in the past about leaving every place we go to free of anything which could be traced back to us or reveal what we do. Hell Dean the man made us wipe down out glasses in diners after we used it so they couldn't get our fingerprints and link us to the place. He's not about to leave a room like that if he had no intention on returning."

"Yeah but you would never have believed that Dad would have a sloppy cover story either" Dean pointed out. Sam swallowed remaining silent, his stomach churning with unease. "Look Sam if it helps I don't think Dad planned to abandon the hunt half way through or to leave the room the way it was, as I said something happened here that sent him running with nothing. Sam-"Dean hesitated for a moment before he spoke on a sigh. "I have Dad's journal with me."

"Dad's journal" Sam repeated feeling as though he had just been kicked in the stomach and winded. "That can't be, we both know that dad's pretty much surgically attached to the thing. He doesn't go anywhere without it, you've gotta be mistaken Dean" he said.

"It's definitely John's journal Sam" Tansy confirmed, a surprising soft tone to her voice as she continued speaking. "I've seen him refer to it enough in the past to be able to recognise both it and his handwriting at a glance. I'm sorry but it is your Dad's journal."

"None of this makes any sense Dean, Dad would never leave the damn thing behind so why the hell would he leave it behind now, surely the fact that he left it means that he's coming back even if it's just to get the journal."

"That's what I thought as well Sam but I don't think that anymore. He's left it behind on purpose."

"How did you come across it?" Sam demanded.

"The police had it with them at the station so Dad must have left it in the room for us to find it but we didn't because neither of us was looking for it. He knew that I would come looking for him."

"Is there any clues in there for us? You know something telling us where he is?"

"He used his usual marine trick of leaving us coordinates Sam" Dean answered sounding tired over the phone.

"Coordinates" Sam repeated, shaking his head as he bit down hard on his lower lip. "Well it's a start I guess, where do they lead to then?" he asked.

"No idea" Dean replied bluntly. "My maps are with you in baby and this hire car which Tansy was given has no maps in it either so I can't check it out yet. It could be that they lead to another hunt or maybe they'll lead directly to Dad, I just don't know."

"This isn't important right now, we can discuss this later when we've got a map and we know where John is sending Dean" Tansy said, a stern note coming to her voice. "The main thing for us right now is to get our asses to the Welch's old home, dig up Constance's body and salt and burn her remains before she finds another poor cheating bastard to kill. I'm not expert on Women in white but I do remember my Dad telling me that they don't kill pleasantly. The victim tends to suffer agony before she's done with them."

"Tansy right, the only thing to focus on now is ending that bitch's existence once and for all" Dean said.

"Yeah I know" Sam answered "It's just the fact that I don't get any of this Dean, I mean Dad just ups and leaves a hunt unfinished with no explanation to anyone as far as we know, he leaves his journal for the first time since he started keeping it and he leaves coordinates which could lead to anywhere in the country. I mean call me crazy but something isn't adding up here. I've got a serious bad feeling over this and OH FUCK" Sam yelled, his eyes widening as he caught sight of the woman standing in the middle of the road, watching him and making no move to get out of the way. Sam dropped the mobile and gripped the steering wheel, slamming his foot down hard on the break, thankful that Dean kept his baby so well maintained, as she automatically responded, slowing to a stop. Sam knew though that it wasn't going to be quick enough, he was going to hit the woman.

He gasped in shock when the impala went straight through her form before it came to a screeching halt, the engine purring, the only sound other then Sam's ragged breathing to break the silent.

"Sam? SAM! For god sake Sam answer me, are you okay?" Sam clutched at the wheel, holding it tightly as he tried to stop his heart beating so violently in his chest. He stared out at the empty road with wide eyes before he let out a shaky breathe, looking away his eyes automatically searching for the phone. He could hear his brother's frantic voice trying to reach him.

Sam spotted it, reaching towards it before he suddenly froze, the hairs on the back of his neck standing up as another voice spoke, the sound coming from the back seat. Sam recognised the cold, female voice from the tape which his brother had played for him back in the car park of his apartment building.

"Take me home"

Sam slowly straightened, his eyes moving to the mirror, a shudder going through him as he met the cold dead eyes of Constance Welch, eyes which were fixed on him with a hungry look which froze the blood in his veins.

"Take me home" she repeated slowly, an undercurrent of anger coming to her voice.

"No, I don't think so" he replied firmly, thankful that his voice didn't shake. He watched as her eyes narrowed at him in the mirror before she broke the gaze, looking towards his door instead. Sam started when the lock slid down, trapping him in the car with her. He twisted in the seat, grabbing at the lock trying to pull it up but it was hopeless. The lock was stuck fast. He threw himself across the passenger seat trying to force that one open but it was clear that it wasn't going to move.

Sam hissed when the car suddenly roared into life beneath him, shooting forward as though someone had placed their foot down hard on the acceleration.

"No fucking way!" Sam stated, grabbing at the steering wheel and trying to swing it to the side but it remained on course. Sam wasn't in charge of his brother's car anymore, Constance was.

He had to get out of there. He gritted his teeth and slammed his shoulder hard against the door, a hiss of pain escaping his mouth though the door remained closed.

Sam was stuck.

He watched as the car came to a stop outside an old abandoned building. The engines and lights turned off leaving them in complete silence; Sam couldn't even hear the sound of insects in the surrounding area. He swallowed, looking out of the window, his eyes lighting on the old metal post box which had the surname Welch painted on the side. At least Constance had brought him to where he needed to get to; he only hoped he would survive long enough for Dean and Tansy to reach him.

"Don't do this" he stated, looking back at Constance in the mirror. She looked at him, her eyes searching his for a moment before she spoke, the sound of her voice making the hair on his arms rise.

"I can never go home" she remarked sadly, a look of longing on her face when her eyes moved past Sam to focus on the ruined house in front of them. Sam wondered whether she was seeing it as it was now or whether she saw the house as it once was. He searched her face, surprised to see a glimmer of fear in her eyes.

"You're scared to go home" Sam remarked, his eyes widening as he twisted round in his seat to confront her. He frowned in confusion when he saw that the back seat was empty, his eyes flickered over the space before he slowly turned round, flinching back with an aborted cry when he realised that she was sitting in the passenger seat next to him, her body angled towards him.

Sam barely had time to blink before she was in his lap, pushing him back hard enough that the driver seat reclined back into a lying down position, the sudden movement making him gasp in surprise. He forced his eyes open as she leaned towards him.

"Hold me" she begged "I'm so cold." Sam gasped in pain as she leaned against him, the coldness from her burning into him, making him shudder as her hands held his shirt tightly, stopping him from moving. He hissed forcing him self to meet her eyes.

"You can't kill me" he stated "I'm not unfaithful, I never have been" he declared, making a sound of agony when she leaned closer, whispering in his ear.

"But you will be" she promised him darkly, leaning back and tilting her head in a way that made her look as though she was an innocent girl. "Just hold me" she said, jerking his face around and holding him in place, her cold fingers digging into his skin making him grunt in pain as she leaned down and kissed him, her lips burning his.

Sam stretched, trying desperate to reach the keys which were still stuck in the ignition. He forehead furrowed in pain though he tried to ignore the agony her lips were causing him. If he could just turn the key then he could slam his foot down on the accelerator, hopefully jerking her away from him, giving him enough leeway to get the hell out of the car. He could just about reach them, his fingerprints brushing the key ring.

Constance suddenly reared back, staring into his face as hers twisted into a grinning vision of horror before her form flickered and she disappeared from his view.

Sam glanced around him, eyes wide as he tried to gather his bearings and figure out exactly where she had disappeared to. He barely had time to move towards the door before a scream erupted from his mouth as he felt a sudden burning sensation in the middle of his chest, a sensation which sent shards of pain through every part of his body making him wonder whether he was having a heart attack. He forced his arms to move, ripping open his zipped hooded top and gazed down in horror as his eyes focused on the five finger marks burning through his t-shirt to the unprotected skin which lay beneath. He yelled, crying out in agony as Constance flickered into life on top of him, her hand clutching at his chest as her face twisted between the form he recognised from her photo and the other face.

The sound of a gun being fried attracted his attention, causing him to gasp as the window shattered above him, sprinkling him with shards of glass. He forced him self to open his eyes, his gaze focusing on Constance who had turned away from him to glare at something outside the car. Sam prayed that it was Dean and that his brother had managed to reach him in time.

Constance hissed in annoyance, turning back to Sam and placing her hand back in the same position as before. Sam screamed, the sound almost masking the sound of the gun going off again. He sucked in a lungful of air when Constance suddenly disappeared again. He forced him self to sit up, ignoring the agony the move caused him and turned the key, the impala roaring into life beneath him once more his ally. His eyes narrowed.

"I'm taking you home bitch" he promised darkly, hitting his foot down on the accelerator, slamming through the fence surrounding the house and through the front door as though they weren't there. He grunted, hitting the dashboard hard before he was jerked back into the seat by the impact. Sam blinked looking around him with a dazed look. He could hear his brother calling him, his voice sounding fearful as the sound of running footsteps approached him.

"Sammy!"

Sam twisted his head on the chair, glancing towards the passenger door with a look of relief when he saw his brother's face appear, staring at him through the window with a thankful look. "Sam, are you okay?" Dean demanded, holding the frame of the passenger door tightly in his grip.

"Yeah I think so" Sam responded slowly, moving his limbs to make sure that none of them were broken. He watched as Dean forced open the passenger door and lent into it, reaching towards Sam.

"Can you move Sam?" he asked.

"Yeah, nothing feels broken, help me though" he said reaching out his hand towards his brother. Dean grasped it, pulling gently on it until he could get an arm around Sam. Sam leaned heavily against him, wrapping his arm around Dean's waist to help steady him. Moving hurt but it wasn't anything which Sam couldn't deal with.

"There you go Sam" Dean said, adjusted Sam so he could slam the passenger door shut behind them; he moved them a bit before he rested Sam's back against the car for a moment.

"Thanks Dean" Sam muttered, glancing up and freezing.

Constance was in front of them, standing in between them and the doorway holding a large picture frame in her hand. She was looking down at it with a half sad, half pitying look on her face before her expression suddenly hardened and she threw the picture to the ground, her eye rising to fix on Sam and Dean with a look of fury.

She stepped out of the way, waving her hand at the bureau behind her which suddenly moved, slamming into him and Dean before they had a chance to move and pinning them to side of the impala.

"Push" Dean gasped, pushing against the bureau but it was hopeless, somehow Constance was keeping it from moving.

"Fuck" Sam muttered as Constance stepped forward towards them, his chest gave an unpleasant throb of pain as though to remind him what he had just experienced before she suddenly stopped. Sam blinked, tilting his head up when the lights suddenly began flickering like mad around them. He looked back down, his struggles ceasing when he heard the distinct sound of water running, dripping down the side of the staircase. Sam frowned, his gaze moving to Constance who was staring at the top of the stairs with a fearful look on her face. She flickered, her form disappearing only to appear at the bottom of the stairs, her head tilted back as she stared up them.

Sam leaned against the bureau, twisted his head to the side so he could follow her gaze. He blinked, his mouth falling open when he saw two small children aged about eight and six standing side by side at the top, their faced concealed by shadows as they stared back down at Constance. Sam watched as they suddenly gripped each others hands and spoke, their combined voices sounding eerie in the silence of the house, sending a chill down Sam's spine.

"You've come home to us Mummy"

Sam breathed out, risking a glance at his brother but Dean didn't seem to notice the look, his full attention fixed on the scene which was unfolding in front of them. Sam swallowed, looking at Constance taking in her distraught expression as she stared up at the children she had killed. Sam blinked in surprise when they suddenly appeared behind her staring up at her back, a world of questions and contempt in their gazes.

Constance swung round to face them but they moved before she could do anything, wrapping their arms around her and holding tightly.

Constance threw her head back and screamed in anguish as the two small children pulled her downwards, their images merging together and flickering until nothing remained but a black puddle on the floor and the echoes of Constance's screams in the air.

* * *

Author Note

**Thanks for taking the time to read **


	23. Chapter 23

Reunion

By

Ava Brett

Disclaimer

**Characters which belong to Eric Kripke the creator of Supernatural who feature in this chapter are:**

**Sam Winchester, Dean Winchester and mentions of Constance Welch and her children**

**Characters that belong to me Ava Brett who are featured in this chapter are:**

**Tansy Winchester and James Winchester**

**Please do not use any of my characters without first asking my permission.**

**As usual I am merely using these characters for my own entertainment purposes and I make no money from this at all. It's all for fun **

Author Note

**The best thing about writing this story is the ability it gives me to wrap up loose ends or parts of the pilot which are addressed once and never addressed again. For example did Sam and Dean burn the remains of Constance's body after her children dragged her downwards to hell?**

**The beginning of this chapter is happening at the same time as the last one just so you know**

**Anyway not many chapters remaining now… now its time to gather up any loose ends I have before the end… ahhh the end…**

**Enjoy!**

Overall Summary

**When Sam Winchester left for Stanford University to study law it never occurred to him that life for his brother Dean would go on without him, now his brother is back, needing help to locate their missing father but he isn't alone. Sam needs to figure out where he stands now and decide once and for all if he's a Winchester or not.**

Chapter Summary

**Tansy has two jobs to do and she's gonna make sure she does them well**

Overall Romances

**Main Romances**

**Dean Winchester/Tansy Winchester (OFC) and Sam Winchester/Jessica Moore **

**Mentioned Romances**

**Troy Squire/Amy Hein, Joseph Welch/Constance Welch, John Winchester / Mary Winchester and unrequited Troy Squire / Constance Welch**

Romance for this chapter

**Dean Winchester / Tansy Winchester, Sam Winchester / Jessica Moore**

* * *

Chapter Twenty Three

* * *

**1****st**** November 2005**

**13:15 PM**

**The Welch's House**

**55 Breckenridge Road**

**Jericho**

**California**

* * *

Tansy Winchester's Point of View

* * *

"Dean what the hell are you doing?" Tansy yelled after Dean, her heart in her throat as she watched her husband open the passenger door and leap out of the moving car, landing hard before he steadied himself running across the dusty driveway towards the impala and the woman in white who was straddling something, something which she assumed was Sam if the screams of agony erupting through the windows was anything to go by.

Her breath caught in her throat as Sam let out a particular loud scream, the noise sending a shiver down her spine. She watched as Dean raised the gun he had been holding and thought briefly about following him out of the car to provide him with backup but she couldn't and the bastard knew it.

Tansy looked away, staring at her shaking hands as she pressed her foot down on the accelerator. She had two jobs to do and she was going to make damn sure she did them.

The first one was the most important to her, it was her responsibility to keep James safe from harm, she was positive that Constance would leave the small child alone, the same way she would leave Tansy alone but there was always a chance, however slight it might be, that Constance wasn't the only spirit haunting this particular area of land. There was something about the atmosphere of the place which she could feel, something which felt as though it was alive and watching her, placing her on full alert as she peered through the window screen looking for anything which would explain the feeling.

There was nothing though and Tansy didn't have the luxury of having the time to hesitate, not when she knew that Dean was in danger.

Tansy still had a buried body to find.

She stopped the car, glancing back over her shoulder at James, breathing a sigh of relief when she saw that he was still fast asleep, dreaming away if the flickering pupils beneath his closed eyelids were anything to go by, hopefully it meant that for once James would remain asleep instead of pulling his usual trick of waking up minutes after his parents left him as though sensing that they were gone. Although she was positive Constance would ignore them she still didn't want to bring attention to the fact that they were there.

She flung open the driver's door and hurried round to the back of the car, opening the trunk and lifting up the four items she needed for her second task. Thank god she had been sensible enough to think ahead and visit the hardware store in Jericho before she had rang in the false shot call to the police department.

She shut the trunk, flinching at the sound of gunfire which broke the heavy silence surround the house. She breathed out, her grip tightening on the object in her arms before she forced herself to move, glancing once through the back window at her sleeping son before she sprinted towards the small gravestone she could see surrounded by flowers. This was where she needed to be.

Tansy twisted round once thankful to see that the car was still in view and parked close enough that she could be over to it in mere seconds, any sound that James made she would hear.

Dropping the salt, the small flask filled with gasoline and the box of matches she with her to the side of where she stood, Tansy gripped the shovel handle, staring at it for a moment before her eyes raised to the sky as she silently prayed for the strength to complete her task before she began digging, ignoring the fact that her clothes swiftly became covered with mud or that she was sweating or that her arms were aching after a few minutes, she merely kept on at it. Normally it was Dean who did the digging when they were faced with a classic salt and burn job but her husband was clearly preoccupied trying to save Sam and there was no time to waste. If Tansy could find Constance's body then she could destroy her spirit before she could hurt Sam or Dean any further. The mere thought of the spirit touching Dean sent a blast of rage through her giving her a much needed burst of strength.

She kept on digging, her breathing heavy as her gaze flickered between the ground she was slowly exposing and the car to make sure that James was still safe. She wondered how Dean was doing, she had heard a massive crash moments before and the faint sound of Dean calling Sam's name in a panic tone which caused her heart to twist in her chest but there had been nothing since then, just a silence, she prayed that the silence didn't mean that Dean was hurt or in trouble.

A flash of white beneath her caught her attention and she glanced down.

"Thank fuck for that" She muttered under her breathe as she dropped to her knees and used her hands to scoop the remaining dirt from the old bones she had exposed. Joseph Welch had obviously buried his wife in her Sunday best if the ragged clothes surrounding the bones were anything to go by. The flesh was completely gone though for which she was highly thankful. She hated when there was still flesh on the skeleton.

Tansy twisted, grabbing the salt and sprinkled it liberally on the bones before she did the same with the flask of gasoline. She breathed out, pushing her self to her feet before she bent down and picked up the matches, opening them and striking a match up, she muttered a quick prayer before she dropped the match into the makeshift grave, taking a step back as the skeleton suddenly ignited with a whooshing sound, heat sucking in the cold air from around her.

She watched the flames for a split second before she glanced up, her eyes widening as a cry of sheer anger and agony broke through the air.

"Dean" she cried out, sprinting to the car, she stopped by it, pulling open the backdoor hard and pulled their son into her arms. He was awake, sleepily looking around him in confusion as he clutched at her, clearly taking comfort from her familiar presence. It was a stupid thing to do and she knew it, she should have dived into the front seat and driven off but she couldn't, she had to know if Dean was okay. How could she live with herself if he and Sam needed medical attention and she had merely driven off leaving them behind?

Constance was gone, that much she knew. She had burnt the bitch's bones her self and the cry which had torn through the air had been feminine sounded not masculine meaning that it couldn't have come from either Sam or Dean.

"Keep quiet for mummy baby" she whispered to James, kissing the side of his head. She shifted down, reaching into her leather boot and pulling out her knife. It might not do much good but she felt better having it in her hand.

Tansy smiled reassuringly at James before she crept round to the front of the house, staring with wide eyes at the damage she could see, the lower portion of the front of the house was destroyed. Shaking her head Tansy ran lightly up the remaining stairs dodging the broken one before she went through the open door, her eyes moving around as she took in the scene with a quick glance. There was a puddle on the floor and water dripping down the staircase as though someone had left the tap on it the bathroom causing flooding. In the middle of the room stood the impala, still whole and gleaming in the faint light and pinned to it by a large wooden bureau were Sam and Dean.

"Dean!" Tansy said out loud, moving towards him. Dean glanced up at her voice, meeting her eyes with a look of relief as he reared back against the side of the impala and kicked the bureau away from them, immediately turning to Sam and wrapping his arm around him when the younger boy stumbled forward. Tansy's eyes flickered away from Dean's face to take in her brother in law. He looked injured, the front of his t-shirt blooded with five puncture marks in the material, marks which strangely looked like finger tips. She swallowed; Sam had clearly had a lucky escape. "Are you both okay?" she demanded looking between them both.

"I'm fine Tans" Dean answered, resting Sam back against the impala "And Sam is-"

"Fine as well" Sam interrupted answering for him self. "I'm just feeling slightly tender at the moment that's all."

Tansy breathed out a sigh of relief, stepping to Dean and wrapping her arm around him, squeezing him tightly, her eyes drifted shut as she buried her face against his side, breathing in his familiar scent and feeling the warmth of his body against hers, reassuring her that he was whole and healthy.

"What happened in here? Why is the impala in the middle of the living room?" She demanded, looking around the room again, gripping Dean's shirt tightly in her hand. He reached over and took James from her, holding the small boy closed to him with one arm while he used the other one to wrap around her shoulder hauling her tightly against him.

"We've still got to deal with the body" Dean said tiredly, leaning against the impala.

"No you don't" she replied. "I've already found her and salted and burned her. Constance Welch is not coming back" Tansy stated confidently. Dean frowned.

"James-"

"Was completely fine and safe the entire time Dean, you know I would never put him at risk" she said sternly, Dean's mouth quirk into a slight smile at her tone before he nodded. "So you haven't told me yet, what happened in here while I was round back getting dirty?" she asked, rolling her eyes at the suddenly gleam of interest which came to Dean's green eyes at her comment.

"Sam took her home" Dean replied simply. Tansy raised an eyebrow waiting for Dean to continue speaking but he remained silent, instead Sam took up the tale from where he stood resting next to his brother, his voice quiet and breathless as though he was experiencing pain, looking at his injury Tansy was pretty sure he was.

"In the car when Constance decided to hitch a ride with me, she kept asking me to take her home and when I refused to do so she took control of the impala-"

"For the second time, the stupid bit-" Dean cut him self off abruptly, shooting James a guilty look when the small boy tilted his head back to look at him with wide blue eyes. Sam shot his brother a small smile of amusement before he continued his story.

"When we got here and she killed the engine she told me that she couldn't go home. I figured out that there was something about the house which was keeping her from going in it. Turns out that this was the place where she had killed her children or at least up there was" Sam remarked, waving his hand towards the staircase which was still dripping water. "She knew that they were both in here, waiting for her to return to them. She couldn't face them after what she done so she kept away, so after she had finished trying to rip my heart out my chest I drove her home and they came for her, dragging her down with them so that was probably at the same moment you burned her bones out back." Sam said, closing his eyes with a sigh.

"What about the bureau?" she questioned, glancing at the piece of future which was now simply standing in the middle of the room.

"She used it to keep us from escaping, she had clearly had plans for us before they were derailed by her children" Dean answered, reaching out and slapping his hand against Sam's chest ignoring the sound of pain which escaped Sam's mouth at the contact. "It was a good thing that Sammy found out what her weak spot was, between the kids dragging her down to hell and you salting and burning the body Tans, old Constance shouldn't be troubling anyone out here anymore."

"Yeah it was a good job done by me and Tansy but what about you, you loser? What the hell were you thinking when you tried to shoot Caspar in the face? It's like rule number one in the Hunter's guidebook. Don't bother shooting supernatural creatures with normal bullets because they will have absolutely not effect on it at all other then to pi- annoy it" Sam stated, correcting him self last minute with a glance at his nephew.

Dean snorted.

"Yeah well unfortunately Sammy I didn't exactly have access to my weapon stash in baby did I? Did you want me to ask Constance to stop ripping your heart out so I could head to the trunk and find the right weapon to cause her maximum pain? I had a gun and I had Tansy's knife so I went with the gun because it seemed the better option at the time or did you want me to throw rocks and sticks at her? I don't know why you're bitching anyway" he stated "It distracted her enough to save your life didn't it" he pointed out before he passed James back to Tansy who took him automatically. Tansy watched as Dean turned to face his car, bending down slightly so he could look at it as he ran a tender hand over the metal work. "And another thing Sammy, if you're wrecked my car in any fashion then I'm afraid I'll have to kill you, I'm sure Jessica will understand once I explain the reason why she isn't getting her boyfriend back!"

Tansy rolled her eyes, turning her attention to Sam watching him carefully with growing concern. The younger man was watching his brother with an expression torn between annoyance and affection but Tansy could see the pain hidden in the hazel eyes, he was too much like Dean in that way for her to miss it. She shook her head and turned from them, heading out of the large gap and walking back towards the rented car, ignoring Dean as he called her name. She went to the trunk and pulled out the first aid kit she had made up earlier, tucking it beneath her arm as she adjusted James in the other one and headed back into the room where the brothers were.

"Where did you go?" Dean asked curiously, his eyes moving from her face to the first aid kit she held with a look of growing understanding. Tansy lowered James to the ground, speaking quietly to him as she ran her hand over his curly hair.

"Go to Daddy Jago" she remarked before she turned to face Sam. "You" she said pointing at him "Take off your shirt for me"

Sam raised an eyebrow at the command, his mouth falling open as he glanced towards Dean before shrugging and complying, wincing when he was forced to lift his arms over his head to slip off his t-shirt leaving him bare chested in the room.

"Sit over here" she waved her hand at one of the dust covered chairs which had managed to survive the impala crashing through the wall, Sam hesitated for a moment, looking down at himself before he looked towards Dean again. "Seriously Sam" Tansy snapped. "I'm not interested in your body nor do I like you that way, trust me when I say that you aren't my type in any shape or form. I just want to sort out your wound and cover it for you until we get to the motel and I'm able to deal with it properly, unless of course you want to go back home and explain to Jessica how you got five infected marks on your chest which looks suspiciously like fingertips?"

"Ouch, way to spare a guy's feelings Tansy" Sam muttered, shaking his head as he lowered him self into the seat in front of her, watching as Tansy sank to her knees, her attention on the first aid box as she opened it.

"She does have a point Sammy, why would she want you when she has me?" Dean chimed in sounding smug. Tansy turned to him to glare at him, her fear and worry flaring up as she remembered how Dean had jumped from a moving car.

"And you" she said pointing a finger at him. "Just what the hell were you thinking diving from a moving car?" she demanded, her eyes flickering between Dean and James before they moved back to meet her husband's gaze. "And then as if that wasn't bad enough Dean you then decide to take on a spirit with a freaking pistol. Do you have a death wish or something?" she demanded, surprised by how upset she felt, normally she was much better at hiding her fear of losing Dean from him. Dean's eyes softened as he opened her mouth to speak but she stopped him. "I don't want to hear about it right now" she stated "I've a job to do."

She turned back to Sam and tilted her head back at him as she lifted out a jar of TCP. Sam stared at it.

"Err Tansy-" he began, stopping when she smiled softly at him.

"Sorry Sam but this is gonna hurt."

* * *

Author Note

**Thanks for reading **


	24. Chapter 24

Reunion

By

Ava Brett

Disclaimer

**Characters which belong to Eric Kripke the creator of Supernatural who feature in this chapter are:**

**Sam Winchester, Dean Winchester and mentions of Constance Welch and Joseph Welch**

**Characters that belong to me Ava Brett who are featured in this chapter are:**

**Tansy Winchester and James Winchester**

**Please do not use any of my characters without first asking my permission.**

**As usual I am merely using these characters for my own entertainment purposes and I make no money from this at all. It's all for fun **

Author Note

**So I'm sorry for the delay in getting this chapter up. To be completely honest with you I haven't been in a writing mood, I'm assuming maybe it's because I've written so much in such a short amount of time or perhaps my mind wants to focus on other things but whatever the reason then I'm sorry.**

**Reunion is coming to an end I'd say we're about maybe four, possibly five chapters at the very most away from the story's completion. If you have enjoyed this version of the pilot then please look out for Wendigo which is the second book in the round table saga! It probably be up pretty soon though not until this one is finished.**

**Anyway please enjoy!**

Overall Summary

**When Sam Winchester left for Stanford University to study law it never occurred to him that life for his brother Dean would go on without him, now his brother is back, needing help to locate their missing father but he isn't alone. Sam needs to figure out where he stands now and decide once and for all if he's a Winchester or not.**

Chapter Summary

**Dean's in the doghouse and he knows it…**

Overall Romances

**Main Romances**

**Dean Winchester/Tansy Winchester (OFC) and Sam Winchester/Jessica Moore **

**Mentioned Romances**

**Troy Squire/Amy Hein, Joseph Welch/Constance Welch, John Winchester / Mary Winchester and unrequited Troy Squire / Constance Welch**

Romance for this chapter

**Dean Winchester / Tansy Winchester, Sam Winchester / Jessica Moore**

* * *

Chapter Twenty Four

**1****st**** November 2005**

**14:05 PM**

**The Welch's House**

**55 Breckenridge Road**

**Jericho**

**California**

* * *

Dean Winchester's point of view

* * *

"We should be able to reverse the car out of here without any problems" Dean remarked as he headed to the back of the impala and began kicking some of the rubble out of the way of the rear tires. "It doesn't look like there's any major damage to her, or at least none that I can't fix, looks like it's mainly the cosmetic of the car which has suffered." He continued to say as he picked up some broken boards of wood and chucked them to the side. "Looks like I won't have to kill you after all Sammy, I'm sure Jess will be glad of that." He commented as he straightened, looking towards Sam with a feeling of growing concern in the pit of his stomach. His brother had put his shirt back on, his wound temporary bandaged up and dealt with. He would need to have more work done on it when they were back at the hotel to make sure it didn't become infected but the job Tansy did would do until then.

"Lucky me" Sam answered. Dean raised an eyebrow at the tiredness in Sam's voice.

"Are you sure you're ok Sam? She didn't get you anywhere else did she?" Dean demanded, concern lacing his own voice as he took in Sam's pale, sweaty face. Sam shook his head, leaning against the side of the staircase as he rubbed lightly at his injury.

"Oh yeah I'm just peachy Dean" Sam answered, opening his eyes to meet Dean's gaze with a small smirk. "There's nothing quite like a run in with a crazy ass woman in white to get your adrenaline pumping and the day started and no she was only intent on my heart, she left the rest of me alone."

"You were lucky though Sam" Tansy remarked from where she was packing the medical kit away. "Those injuries are fairly deep, any further and she would have torn through your chest muscles. Dean must have done enough to distract her." She stood up, brushing the dust off her dark blue jeans before she bent down and picked up James, holding him tightly in one hand as she brushed the dust off of his hand with a slight frown. She glanced around her, her eyes lingering on the hole in the side of the house. "I wonder whether anyone's gonna notice that" she commented, jerking her thumb towards it as she shook her head with a sigh. Dean glanced at her before his eyes dropped to James. He took a step towards them, holding out his arms for his son, suddenly needing to feel his boy safe and alive in his arms.

Tansy raised an eyebrow at him, her eyes searching his face before she shrugged, bridging the gap between them and handing James over to him.

"Daddy" James stated, looking over Dean's shoulder and pointing at the car, a sad look coming to his face. "Poor impala hurt." Dean made a small sound of amusement, wrapping his arms tightly around James and kissing the side of his head.

"Yep poor impala indeed Jago" Dean replied softly. James continued to stare at the car, his small face scrunching into a look of confusion before he turned to look at Dean, tilting his head to the side.

"Daddy fix impala?" he queried, one small hand reaching out and clutching at the material of Dean's shirt. Dean covered James's hand with his own hand, squeezing down softly on it as he nodded.

"Daddy is definitely gonna fix her up Jago, she's gonna be like brand new before you know It." he promised his son. "You know you can watch me doing it if you want to" he suggested, grinning when James nodded, an excited look coming to his face as he bounced up and down in Dean's arms.

Dean glanced down when Tansy walked passed them, ignoring him as she headed over to the impala and opened the passenger door. She glanced around, her eyes stopping on Sam with a small frown of concern.

"Sam, there are painkillers in the med kit if you think you need to take some, there are fairly powerful ones so they should do the trick pretty quickly" she said. Sam met her gaze and shook his head.

"The pain is alright" he replied "Thanks though, if I need some then I'll get some out." Tansy nodded her head before she climbed into the car, closing the door behind her and scooting over to the driver's seat. Dean blinked, watching her through the back window as she leant forward and turned the key in the ignition, the engine coming to life with the familiar purring sound it always made.

He climbed over the remaining rubble and bent down by the driver's side, peering through the space where the window glass used to be.

"What are you doing?" he asked curiously. Tansy looked at him, raising an eyebrow at him as she twisted around in her seat so she could peer through the back window.

"What exactly does it look like I'm doing love?" she answered, shaking her head before she placed the car into reverse, slowly moving the impala back towards the large hole in the wall.

"Whoa, stop, stop, stop" Dean said, reaching into the car and snatching his hand back when she smacked the back of it glaring at him in a way which made it extremely clear to him that he was in the doghouse with his wife.

"You know I'm a very competent driver Dean and I've driven your baby countless of times in the past" she stated. "I'm more then capable of reversing your car out of a massive gap in the wall. Not only that but I'm the only one who is probably fit enough to drive here. Sam certainly isn't and you look about ready to drop as well."

"I know that you can drive Tans" Dean replied "I was telling you to stop for a moment so I can clear out the remaining junk at the back of the car, call it crazy but I don't want to end up with a flat tire because a splinter got into the rubber and pierced it." Dean glanced up at Sam quickly before he leaned into the car and kissed Tansy on the cheek, moving his mouth to her ear and speaking. "I'm sorry I scared you, I promise I'll make it up to you later." he leaned back meeting her gaze for a moment before James shifted in his arms, making a noise of complaint. Dean rolled his eyes and passed James through the window to Tansy who took him from Dean, placing him securely in her lap and holding him there. "You stay there little man" he said firmly before looking at his wife and pointing his finger at her. "You say there as well" he stated equally as firmly before he headed to the back of the car again and began cleaning out the remaining debris, thankful for the first time that it was still day time so he could see what he was actually doing.

"Hey, you need any help with that?" Sam asked, pushing himself away from his resting post and making his way over to Dean.

"Nope, what you can do is sit the hell down before you face plant to the floor" Dean answered. "Get your fat ass in the back of the impala and stay there, I don't want to hear a word from you" he commanded, pulling a face when Sam rolled his eyes at him but obeyed, limping over to the back of the impala and entering the car, pulling the door closed behind him.

Dean worked steadily for the next two minutes before he stood, wiping his hands against his shirt with a satisfied look on his face. He walked around the car to the driver's seat and reached in, taking James from Tansy.

"Start her up Tans" he stated, slapping his hand lightly down on the roof, a smile coming to his face when she answered him by revving the engine loudly and slowly backing the car up. He moved with her, guiding her through the space, breathing a silent sigh of relief when the car made it down the wrecked porch and onto the soft grass without any further damage occurring to it.

Dean glanced around the house one last time, his eyes lingering once more of the staircase and the puddle by them, he wondered whether the puddle would ever dry up or whether it would remain there as a constant reminder if what had occurred there. Shaking his head, he pushed the thought away and climbed through the hole and down the broken porch; they had done the job they needed to do. He glanced up as the driver's door opened and Tansy climbed out of it, closing it lightly behind her. She looked at him and spoke.

"You and Sam should go together to a diner in the surrounding area like we had discussed. I'll take the rental car back into town and return it to them. Then I'll go and get our belongings together. Sam's already given me the key to his motel room so I'll be able to get his stuff easily as well. I'll call you when I'm ready for a pick up and Sam can come and get me. It be better if you just stay out of the way. The police will know that you're missing by now Dean and they'll be searching everywhere for you" she remarked. Dean nodded.

"That sounds like a good plan" Dean agreed. "Just don't be too long okay" he stated. Tansy raised an eyebrow at him.

"I won't" she promised, she hesitated for a moment before she leaned up and kissed him, moving back before he could react. "And for the record, just because I kissed you it doesn't mean that you're off the hook. I'm still pissed about your little stunt earlier." she stated, giving him another kiss before she turned and lightly jogged to the rental car, climbing into the driver's seat. He watched as she started the engine, waving through the window at him and James before she drove down the dusty driveway towards the main road. Dean watched her until the car was out of sight before he turned and heading to the back, strapping James into his baby seat which had managed to survive the impact without any damage.

"You might as well get in the front seat Sam, it be more comfortable for you." Dean commented, watching as his brother nodded, moving with a groan towards the back door. Dean shook his head, pulling at the straps to make sure James was secure before he moved out of the car, shutting the door behind him and heading towards his own. He climbed in and waited until Sam was ready before he started the engine up.

"So what's the plan now that we're done here in Jericho?" Sam asked him, leaning his head against the window pane with a sigh. Dean glanced at him before he turned his attention back to the window screen.

"Tansy's gone into town to return the car she hired and to get our stuff. She'll call when she's done there and then you'll have to drive in and get her and bring her back to the diner we stop at. We'll grab some food there and then find ourselves a motel away from here and camp for the night.

"What about the interview Dean, I-" Sam began to say, stopping when Dean interrupted him.

"You'll be there Sam" he promised "We'll leave at four in the morning or something, there's not gonna be any traffic at that time so we should make the journey in about three hours, maybe even less depending on where we stay tonight. You'll be home by eight then you can focus on getting your shit together for it, you'll kill this interview and then we'll all have dinner together and then me, Tansy and Jago will go home the next morning. I just seriously need some sleep Sam and I know you do and Tansy does as well, none of us are really fit at this one second in time to make the journey from here to Stanford tonight" Dean said.

There was a moment silence.

"Yeah okay then" Sam said, nodding his head. "So you're heading off pretty much straight away then, you know after the meals finished and all?" he asked. Dean nodded.

"We'll stay the night so we can get some more sleep and then we'll leave about nine in the morning; probably get some breakfast at about eight if you're around. We've got to head back though Sam, we've been gone for two weeks and there are things going on which need our attention" he said with a sigh. "Besides, I don't know about you but I'm most definitely looking forward to sleeping in my own bed again" he confessed with a grin. Sam nodded, a small smile coming to his face as well.

"I know that feeling" Sam responded before he turned to face Dean, an unusual hesitant expression on his face. "You know Dean, I was thinking that maybe me and Jess could come and spend Christmas with you this year if you'll have us and you got the room. If you don't we can always get a hotel in the area or something." He suggested.

Dean's smile grew as he looked away from the road to meet his brother's hazel eyes.

"Yeah I'd like that Sam and don't worry I'm sure we can squeeze you and Jess in somehow."

"Great" Sam said with a grin. Dean nodded, looking back towards the road.

"Yeah Great."

* * *

Author Note

**Thanks for reading **


	25. Chapter 25

Reunion

By

Ava Brett

Disclaimer

**Characters which belong to Eric Kripke the creator of Supernatural who feature in this chapter are:**

**Sam Winchester and Dean Winchester **

**Characters that belong to me Ava Brett who are featured in this chapter are:**

**Tansy Winchester, James Winchester, Mia Meade and Maisie Pittman… you don't actually find out Mia's and Maisie's surname in the chapter but I'm nothing if not a perfectionist when it comes to my own characters so I have placed what their surnames are.**

**Please do not use any of my characters without first asking my permission.**

**As usual I am merely using these characters for my own entertainment purposes and I make no money from this at all. It's all for fun **

Author Note

**Confession time… This chapter was never meant to be in the story but I really wanted some more brotherly moments and I really, really wanted a chapter where you could see Dean in full Daddy Dean mode so you could see what he is like with James. Every other time Tansy has been there so I thought it would be interesting to see how father and son react. Not only that but I wanted to show Sam and Dean interacting without Tansy as well… though its pretty clear she's never far from Dean's mind.**

**This story has been so much fun to write, I'm actually saddened by the fact that it's nearly at an end but I suppose all good things must eventually end!**

**Thank god I decided to make it into a saga because I really don't want to abandon Tansy and James… I really like them!**

**Anyway please enjoy the chapter!**

Overall Summary

**When Sam Winchester left for Stanford University to study law it never occurred to him that life for his brother Dean would go on without him, now his brother is back, needing help to locate their missing father but he isn't alone. Sam needs to figure out where he stands now and decide once and for all if he's a Winchester or not.**

Chapter Summary

**The Winchester boys spend some much needed time with each other while they wait for Tansy's call…**

Overall Romances

**Main Romances**

**Dean Winchester/Tansy Winchester (OFC) and Sam Winchester/Jessica Moore **

**Mentioned Romances**

**Troy Squire/Amy Hein, Joseph Welch/Constance Welch, John Winchester / Mary Winchester and unrequited Troy Squire / Constance Welch**

Romance for this chapter

**Dean Winchester / Tansy Winchester and Sam Winchester / Jessica Moore**

* * *

Chapter Twenty Five

* * *

**1****st**** November 2005**

**16:10 PM**

**Echo Park Diner**

**Interstate 280**

**California**

* * *

Sam Winchester's Point of View

* * *

"This looks like a good place for us to stop" Dean announced breaking the silence in the car as he hit the indicator, waiting for a car to past before he twisted the steering wheel, bringing the impala off of the main interstate they had been travelling down and into a small area which had clearly been placed there in the hope of attracting tourist. It was full of motels, different diners and restaurants offering a variety of different foods as well as several tacky looking shops selling pretty much everything imaginable.

Sam stretched awkwardly, wishing not for the first time that the front of the impala offered him more leg space to use. He reached up, hiding a yawn behind his hand before he rubbed at a crick in his neck, his eyes moving around the surrounding area taking in the layout and the number of cars around them, he wasn't surprised when he saw Dean ignore several spaces to park up in a quiet area which only had one or two cars and trucks already there.

Sam frowned slightly realising that his throat was dry and his eyes dry. He seriously needed something to drink and he needed it now. He glanced up at the clock in Dean's dashboard, his eyes widening when he realised that it was already past four in the afternoon. They had been driving for well over an hour which means that Tansy had been gone for about an hour and a half, perhaps slightly less.

His gaze ended up on his brother, narrowing slightly in concern when he noticed the way his brother was acting. Sam knew that if a stranger happened to glance at Dean at that moment in time then they wouldn't see anything wrong. They would simply see a young man, squinting in the low sunlight, looking thoughtful. Only someone who knew Dean would notice that Dean was tense and that he had grown tenser with each and every mile they had placed between themselves and Jericho.

Sam opened his mouth to ask Dean if he was feeling okay but he swiftly shut it again. Dean wasn't known for participating in moments of emotional sharing, in fact he normally ran a mile at the mere suggestion of one. If Sam asked then he would be met with a sigh which would swiftly be followed by a sarcastic comment and a smack round the back of the head or a punch in his arm before Dean told him to man up and to stop being such a girl.

It was going to be hard enough to come up with an excuse which Jessica would buy to explain the injury on his chest without having a bruise from his brother added to it. He frowned slightly as his chest gave a sharp throb of pain, he was seriously going to have to take those pain killers his sister in law had offered him if he was to have any hope of sleeping that night.

"I think you're right for once" Sam remarked with a half sigh at the sound of outrage Dean made at his comment. "It's large enough and crowded enough that we can get lost here if need be. Did you know it was here or what it a fluke that you found it?" Sam asked curiously.

Dean shrugged his shoulders, twisting his head to the side so he could meet Sam's eyes with a half thoughtful, half amused look.

"I saw it on the way here when you were asleep and snoring your head off so loudly that you drowned out the radio" he replied, grinning when Sam stuck up his middle finger at him. "But you're right, that's one of reason I picked it" he confessed, looking away from Sam and looking through the window at the complex as he reached down and undid his seatbelt.

"What's the other reason then?" Sam remarked with a raised eyebrow. Dean shrugged as he reached for the door handle and answered.

"The second reason is because it's still fairly close to Jericho so you shouldn't have any problem when you drive back to pick up Tansy. We're out of the Jericho police jurisdiction now Sam which means that they can't come and get us now without a hell of a lot of hassle and a shit load of paperwork to deal with. If there's one thing I've learnt it's that police forces don't like other police forces entering their territory. If they could get away with scenting their area with their piss then they would" Dean remarked with a smile at Sam before he climbed out of the car, slamming the door behind him.

"Your Daddy is something else James" Sam remarked with a sigh, glancing back at the small boy who was watching him with a serious expression. He smiled at his nephew before he followed Dean out of the car, slamming his own door behind him. He frowned slightly, pulling his hoodie closer to him and zipping it up. It was surprisingly cool considering that the weather had been fairly warm back in Jericho. He twisted round so he was facing the car and Dean.

"You hungry?" He asked his brother curiously, leaning his torso against the impala, folding his arms over the roof as he waited for an answer. Dean smiled again as he opened the back door, bending down and disappearing for a moment before he remerged from the interior with James held securely in his arms. Sam watched as the small boy's face lit up at the sight of Dean.

"Daddy!" he said happily, throwing his body forward and wrapping his arms tightly around Dean's neck, his head fitting into the crook of Dean's neck, the ease which Dean adjusted to the change in position made Sam think that Dean had held James this way hundreds of times before. Sam watched as Dean closed the door using his hip before he spoke.

"Stupid question there Sammy boy, when have you ever known me to turn down the chance to eat?" he asked with a raised eyebrow as he quickly locked the car up. He checked the driver's door to make sure it was secure before he walked around to the trunk and opened it, pulling out James's baby bag which he rested on the floor.

"Well that is very true," Sam answered with a thoughtful expression, tilting his head from side to side as though he was seriously considering Dean's question. "You are a pig when it comes to food which would explain the small belly you're beginning to sport though that could always just be down to old age" he commented, keeping his face serious with difficulty as he moved to Dean's side.

"You're lucky my son is here or I'd kick your ass for that remark" Dean answered with a roll of his eyes as he adjusted James so he was resting against his hip before he bent down and picked up the baby bag, putting the strap over his other shoulder.

"Do you want me to take James for a while?" Sam offered, surprising him self when the words came out of his mouth. Dean glanced at him, searching his eyes for a moment before he slowly shook his head.

"Normally I'd jump at the chance but I've got him Sammy. He's wet, he's hungry and he's grumpy which means Jago is probably about five minutes from screaming the place down. Let me feed him and change him and then he's all yours, you can hold him as much as you like as long as you eventually give him back to us." Dean said a rare softness to his expression which Sam hadn't seen directed at him self for years. If he was being honest to him self then he could admit that it was a look he had missed and one he had never expected to see again.

"I'll hold you to that" he commented, following Dean towards the nearest diner to them. He glanced up at the sign before they entered before he turned his attention to the warm room. It was fairly large and pleasant. The air smelt of freshly cooked food which made his stomach rumble. He scanned every face looking for anything which looked out of the ordinary but he couldn't see anything. As far as he could see everyone in there were simply there to eat and take a weight off of their feet.

"Go and grab that table towards the back Sammy" Dean said quietly, his gaze tightening on James. "I'm going to head to the restroom to get James sorted out before I put him in the highchair."

"Okay, take your time" Sam remarked, heading towards the table which Dean had indicated, he kept his gaze fixed on his brother and nephew until the pair of them had disappeared through a door and were out of his sight.

He slid into the booth, frowning slightly at the garish yellow colouring of the seat, a colour he knew that Jessica would have hated, before he pulled at the diners menu and glanced at it, his eyes automatically searching for the healthiest options which the diner offered. He used to eat all the same unhealthy food as his father and his brother had but Jessica's expression of sheer horror when she realised the kind of shit he ate had been enough to make him try and ear healthier if only for an easier life. The effects the change in diet had, had on his body had certainly been noticeable as had the look of sheer appreciation and desire which came to his girlfriend's eyes every time she viewed him without a top on. That look alone was enough to make the effort worthwhile.

"Welcome to the Echo Park Diner, can I get you something to drink while you decide what to eat or have you already decided?"

Sam glanced up at the pretty feminine voice which had spoken to him. His eyes focused on a tall slim girl who looked as though she was about his age with long blond hair and big pale blue eyes, she had a wide smile on her face as she caught sight of his eyes, a smile which reminded him of Jessica producing a sharp ache of longing in him. God he couldn't wait until tomorrow when he could see her again and have her back in his arms where she belonged. His eyes dropped automatically to her name badge as a warm smile came to his face.

"I'm just waiting for my brother to return with his son so we aren't ready to order food yet Mia" Sam remarked, ignoring how strange it still felt to mention Dean having a son out loud. "But I will have a large white coffee and Dean will have a large black coffee if that's ok, and-" his voice trailed off , he dropped the menu to the table surface and rested his forearm on it as he realised that he had no idea what Dean or Tansy gave James to drink when he wanted one. Did they give him juice? Or was it water? Hell maybe they still gave him milk. He tried to remember what it was but he just couldn't picture it in his mind.

"And?" Mia prompted breaking Sam away from his thoughts, she watched him with a patient look for him to continue with his sentence.

"And would it be possible to get my nephew a high chair and maybe some crayons and paper for him to draw on?" he asked watching as Mia's serious expression softened at the mention of a baby. She nodded her head, reaching up and tucking a loose strand of hair behind her ear.

"How old is your nephew exactly?" she asked curiously with a slight frown.

"He's two and a half now" Sam answered promptly. Mia nodded slowly before she smiled at him.

"In that case I know just the thing to get him" she remarked "I'll be back in a moment with the high chair and your coffees." She flashed him another polite smile before she turned and headed towards the counter. Sam smiled at her back before he dropped his gaze back to the menu trying to decide what the hell to have.

"Damn Sammy, you should be thankful that I'm such an awesome brother to you and didn't make you change that nappy. How the hell someone so small could produce what Jago just produced is beyond me" Dean announced attracting Sam's attention. He watched with a raised eyebrow as Dean dropped the navy blue bag on the spare seat next to him with a sigh.

"Here's the high chair, sorry about the delay in getting it" Mia said as she appeared from behind Dean, holding the high chair which she placed at the end of the table. Her eyes flickered to James, her face breaking into a smile. "Oh my what a complete and utter little cutie, look at that smile and those curls" she cooed, leaning slightly towards James, who merely watched her, his grip tightening on his father's shirt. She looked up at Dean consideringly. "He must be yours, you can tell, you look a lot alike" she stated, taking a step back.

"Thanks" Dean said, a wide smile coming to his face as he glanced down at James as the small boy looked up at him with a smile. "But he takes after my wife more then me" he said.

"Well she's a lucky lady then to have you both." Mia remarked before she pulled her self together and placed the pack of crayons and a large picture book she had been holding under her arm on the table connected to the high chair. "This" she said tapping the book. "Is given to every child who comes here who can colour, they each get a picture and they colour it and sign it and then the manager takes a colour photocopy of it and places it on the wall for everyone to see" she said, waving a hand towards the entrance where Sam could see the wall she was talking about. "Perhaps your son would like to add to it" she said directing her comment to Dean. "I'll be back in just a moment with your coffees" she remarked before she turned and left them alone to get settled in.

"Well check that out little man" Dean said as he placed James in the high chair and strapped him in so he couldn't escape. "A chance at fame, we can show the world how talented you are at colouring" James grinned widely, instantly opening the book and looking at it. Dean sat down in the booth opposite son, his body turned towards his son as he took the book from him, flicking through the pages until he came to the first blank one and placed it back in front of James. "This one is for you Jago. See the train is being driven by the teddy bear?" Dean pointed out, reaching across James and picking up the box of crayons which he opened, placing them on the side so James could reach them. "Show Uncle Sammy what a big boy you are and how well you can draw in the lines" Dean said, running his hand over James's dark curls before he turned and opened up the baby bag peering into it with a thoughtful frown.

Sam leaned back in his chair, a smile coming to his mouth as he watched Dean in full Daddy mode. He realised that this was the first time he had seen Dean alone with his son and interacting with him, every other time Tansy had been there with him and they had shared the responsibility easily with each other, a clear routine up and running between them. Seeing Dean like this brought back memories to Sam, memories which he had forgotten.

"Anything catch your eye on the menu" Sam asked, shaking him self out of his thoughts. "Oh wait" he said when Dean opened his mouth to answer "Don't tell me, you're gonna order the cheese and bacon burger with a portion of chips" Dean raised an eyebrow.

"Close but no Sam" he replied "If you really want to know then I'm going for the salmon this time around."

Sam's mouth fell open in surprise; he ignored the grin which came to Dean's face at his expression before speaking.

"Right who are you and what have you done with my brother?" he joked with a shake of his head.

"Bite me bitc-" Dean's voice suddenly trailed off, his eyes quickly flickering to James with a guilty expression "I mean be quiet Sam" he amended, before he reached over and grabbed the children menu, looking down at it as he absently fished his mobile from his jean pocket, placing it on the table and glancing at the screen with a frown.

"I wonder how much longer Tansy will take in Jericho" Sam remarked breaking the silence between them. He bit the inside of his mouth, mentally slapping him self when he saw the way Dean's jaw tightened at the question, his eyes moving back towards the mobile screen again. The action made Sam's eyebrow rise as he realised with a shock that Dean was actually worried, it was either that or the fact that he really didn't like being separated from his wife even for a short amount of time. Knowing Dean though Sam was pretty sure that option one was the most likely one.

"She shouldn't take much longer" Dean said, his gaze back on the menu he was still studying.

Sam pulled a face, breathing out silently as he looked passed Dean to see Mia approaching holding their large mugs of coffee with an ease born of constant hours of practising. She placed them down in front of tem before she glanced towards Dean.

"Can I get your son anything to drink?" she asked. Dean glanced at her before he turned and rummaged through the bag, making a sound of satisfaction as he pulled out a child sized carton of apple juice.

"Nope we're all good here for the moment thanks" he replied, taking the straw off the back of the cartoon and pulling it out of it wrapper. Sam watched as Dean pierced the top of it with the bottom of the straw and handed it to James who took it eagerly from him, taking a sip from it, smiling around the straw in a way which made Sam want to take a picture to send to Jessica, he could see her reaction to it now.

"Right in that case are you ready to order food and if so what can I get you all?" she asked, pulling her notepad and pen from the pocket of her apron. She waited with an expectant look on her face. Sam waved his hand at Dean, indicating for him to go first. Dean nodded at him and looked back at the waitress.

"I'll have the salmon with a jacket potato and a side of salad and James will have the children's fishcakes, peas and chip meal please" he said with a flash of a smile before he glanced at Sam. "Sam?"

"I'll have to same as my brother thanks Mia" Sam replied with a smile of his own. She wrote their order down with a flourish before smiling at them.

"I'll place the order now and it will be with you all shortly. If you need a refill of your coffee or anything then just flag me down" she said with a nod.

A slight silence followed her departure before Dean broke it, a slow smile coming to his face.

"Soooooo" he remarked, bending down and picking up a blue crayon which James had knocked to the floor, placing it back on the high chair table. "First name basis with the waitress"

Sam rolled his eyes at the comment.

"Don't be jealous Dean that she likes me better then you, I thought you would have been used to it by now" Sam answered back with a bored expression on his face as he lowered his eyes to study his fingernails. He could feel his mouth twitching with the need to smile but forced him self to maintain the bored look.

"Now Sam, we both know that she liked you right up to the moment she saw me and James and then it changed, it's not your fault, we're just an unstoppable force together aren't we little man?" Dean asked, smiling at James when the small boy looked up and grinned.

"Yes Daddy" he stated before he continued with his colouring, a look of concentration coming to his face as he dropped the red crayon he was holding and picked up a green one instead.

"Keep telling your self that Dean" san said "And what's the hell is with the healthy eating by the way? Since when did Dean Winchester pick Salmon and jacket potatoes with a side salad when there was a burger and chips on the menu? I mean come on Dean, a freaking side salad?" he demanded, crossing his arms over his chest as he waited for Dean to answer him.

"Since I got married Sam" Dean replied with a heartfelt sigh. "It seems easier to just eat healthier to avoid yet another lecture from my wife about heart conditions and getting fat and having clogged arteries and god knows what else she talks about when she proper gets going on one." Sam stared at him for a moment with wide eyes before he suddenly snorted, laughter erupting from his mouth. "Care to share the joke with the rest of the table Sam?" Dean asked with a raised eyebrow and a bemused expression on his face.

"Nothing" Sam said, waving a hand in Dean's direction as he wiped at his eyes wondering when the last time he had laughed so much was. "I just never thought that I'd live to see the day when you would be well and truly whipped by a woman. I mean eating healthy food? Come on Dean, Tansy has you wrapped around her little finger completely" Dean shrugged.

"And what, Jessica doesn't have you wrapped around her little finger?" Dean countered looking amused. "Tell me Sammy boy why didn't you go for the burger and chip option like you used to every time we came to a diner like this?" Dean demanded his face lighting up when Sam hesitated. "AHA" Dean said loudly, ignoring the looks the sound attracted as he jabbed his finger in Sam's direction "Could it be because Jessica has given you a similar lecture? Who's whipped now!" he said before he shook his head and sighed, dropping his head against the back of the seat "Women Sam, what can you do?"

"Nothing, except to sit back and enjoy the perks" Sam sad, catching Dean's eyes when Dean lowered his head back down and met his gaze, a warm smile coming to both their faces. "You know this is kinda nice" Sam remarked suddenly when Dean looked away to James when the boy made a noise of frustration.

"What is?" Dean asked absently passing another crayon to James which had ended up on their table surface.

"You know, actually seeing each other and spending time together when there's not a hunt involved, I can't remember the last time it happened."

Dean stared at him for a moment, emotions crossing his face quickly, too quickly for Sam to be able to identify what they were. His brother opened his mouth as though he was about to say something but stopped when his phone suddenly vibrated on the table. He glanced towards it automatically, a relieved look coming to his face as he picked it up.

"It's Tansy" he said. Sam watched as his brother hit the connect button and brought the phone to his ear, speaking into it. "Hey Tansy" he remarked "You ready to be picked up from Jericho yet?" he asked, falling silent after his question, listening to whatever it was his wife was saying to him. Sam wished that Dean would put the phone on loudspeaker since he hated listening to one sided conversations but Dean didn't. "Yeah, we've just got to the diner complex off interstate 280 and ordered our food about five minutes ago" Dean remarked, frowning slightly before he spoke again "Fishcakes, peas and chips, it looked the healthiest thing on the menu" Dean fell silent again ignoring Sam for the moment. "Yeah I gave him one of the apple juice cartons in the bag, yeah he's drinking it, he's drank-" Dean reached over and picked up the carton before placing it back down. "Half of it now, if he finishes it and he' still thirsty then I'll give him the orange one." He blinked "Of course Tans, which one did he have yesterday? The yoghurt or the fruit pot because I'll give him the other one today for variety, we'll have to pick up some more stuff when we drop Sam off tomorrow" he fell silent again "Okay fruit pot it is then.. Hmm, oh he's colouring in at the moment, you want to speak to him quickly?"

Tansy must have agreed because Dean placed his mobile next to the side of James's head and spoke when James looked up at him with big blue eyes.

"Say hello to Mamma Jago" he remarked.

Sam watched as James's face lit up.

"Mamma" he said excitedly into the phone. "Mamma I miss you"

Watching the scene in front of him Sam was suddenly struck by the fact that this right here was his brother's life now, nothing had brought it home quite as much to him as watching Dean holding out his mobile to his son so the small boy could speak to his mother who would soon be joining them again, Dean's white gold wedding band glinting in the bright lights above them. His whole attention fixed on his son. It was such a change from the Dean, Sam used to know that it took his breath away. The old Dean would have been stuffing his face with bad food, making crude comments and flirting with every waitress in the joint. He certainly wouldn't be having a conversation with his wife over whether to give their son a fruit pot or a yoghurt for his dessert.

How had she done it? What had Tansy done to bring out the best in his brother like this? There were parts of him which were definitely the same, the banter between him and Dean for example was the same and yet where was the flirting? Sam hadn't seen Dean flirt once with anyone who wasn't his wife since he had seen him again, not with Jess, not with Mia when she took her orders. Hell apart from the polite smile he gave her Dean had spent the time dealing with James.

Sam felt his curiosity grow as he thought about it. He would have to find out now or it would end up driving him mad.

He sucked in a sharp breathe, wondering whether there would be a place for him and Jessica in Dean and his family lives or whether his own bad choices and decision had placed him firmly on the sidelines as one of those relative who they would see only on special holidays.

The thought made him cringe.

He blinked when he saw Dean take his phone away from James and bring it to his own ear instead.

"How much longer do you need there to finish up?" Dean asked with a trace of impatience coming to his voice. "Me and Sammy are just waiting for our food to be delivered but he could leave to come and get you as soon as he's finished, we're like an hour away from you at the moment." He went silent again before he nodded glancing out the window towards the complex. "Yeah they've got motels here but I'd be more comfortable with travelling further on before we settled down for the night. The more miles we can out between us and Jericho the better it will be, at least until Abbie works her usual magic with their computer system." A smile came to Dean's face. "Yeah I know, love you too, bye."

Sam tilted his head to the side as Dean hung up and placed the phone back on the table looking as though a large weight had been pushed off his shoulders. His brother glanced at him. "She needs thirty minutes or so to finish everything up and then she'll be ready for a pick up."

"What took her so long to get everything ready?" Sam asked curiously "We didn't have that much stuff with us."

"She was getting more supplies for Jago; you know food and nappies, the usual stuff a small kid of two needs with him."

"It took us an hour to get here Dean" Sam pointed out with a sigh thinking of the journey ahead of him. Dean shrugged.

"Hey she knows it's gonna take you a while to get here so she's gonna go and grab something to eat. Tansy's the only one who didn't flag up as trouble to the police so she'll be fine. Just give her a call when you're twenty minutes away and she'll head back to the motel and gather the stuff so she's ready to leave straight away" Dean replied calmly.

"Here you go" Mia said, appearing beside them holding two large plates which she placed in front of them. She twisted on the spot taking a smaller plate from the red headed waitress who had accompanied them. She hesitated for a moment, glancing at it before she held out the plate to Dean who took it with a smile at the pair of them.

"Thank you Mia and-" his eyes flickered to the red head. "Maisie"

"Thanks, it looks delicious" Sam said with a smile of his own, shooting Dean a quick smug look when she blushed in reaction. Dean rolled his eyes.

"Do you need anything else?" She asked.

"No this will do nicely thanks" Sam answered for them since Dean was now preoccupied with cutting up James's fishcakes. She nodded at them both.

"In that case enjoy your meals" she said before she headed off again leaving them alone.

Sam picked up his knife and fork and cut into the salmon, a small smile coming to his face, he hadn't been kidding when he said the food looked damn good.

He glanced up, watching as Dean took the colouring book away from James, ignoring the annoyed cry James made and wrapping a brightly coloured bib round him neck which had an orange giraffe on it, to protect his t-shirt and shirt combo. Dean straightened it before he placed the plate of food in front of James who clapped his hand together and grinned, bouncing up and down in his seat.

"Don't forget to blow on the food Jago because it's gonna be hot" Dean commented, running his hand through James's hair before he turned his attention to his own food, cutting into it as he spoke. "Why don't you take a freaking picture Sammy, they last longer after all" he remarked causing Sam to laugh as he shook his head, focusing on his own food though his eyes moved regularly to watch his brother and nephew's interactions with each other.

Now this was definitely something he could get used to.

* * *

Author Note

**Thanks for taking the time to read **


	26. Chapter 26

Reunion

By

Ava Brett

* * *

Disclaimer

**Characters which belong to Eric Kripke the creator of Supernatural who feature in this chapter are:**

**Sam Winchester, Dean Winchester and Jessica Moore**

**Characters that belong to me Ava Brett who are featured in this chapter are:**

**Tansy Winchester and James Winchester**

**Please do not use any of my characters without first asking my permission.**

**As usual I am merely using these characters for my own entertainment purposes and I make no money from this at all. It's all for fun **

Author Note

**Sorry for the slow update this time around. My friend has given me Supernatural season eight so I've been watching them, I'm up to episode five now…**

**So the first time I wrote this chapter it was completely different but somehow during the rewrite it ended up like it was below. I guess it was just the way that Sam and Tansy wanted the chapter to go…**

**Anyhoo please enjoy!**

Overall Summary

**When Sam Winchester left for Stanford University to study law it never occurred to him that life for his brother Dean would go on without him, now his brother is back, needing help to locate their missing father but he isn't alone. Sam needs to figure out where he stands now and decide once and for all if he's a Winchester or not.**

Chapter Summary

**Tansy reflects on the past two days…**

Overall Romances

**Main Romances**

**Dean Winchester/Tansy Winchester (OFC) and Sam Winchester/Jessica Moore **

**Mentioned Romances**

**Troy Squire/Amy Hein, Joseph Welch/Constance Welch, John Winchester / Mary Winchester and unrequited Troy Squire / Constance Welch**

Romance for this chapter

**Dean Winchester / Tansy Winchester and Sam Winchester / Jessica Moore**

* * *

Chapter Twenty Six

* * *

**1****st**** November 2005**

**18:00**

**Park Avenue Diner**

**Jericho**

**California**

* * *

Tansy Winchester's Point of View

* * *

"Thanks again for the meal" Tansy called out over her shoulder to the waitress before she stepped out of the Park Avenue diner into the chilled twilight air. The sun was already setting leaving the sky a blaze of pinks, oranges and purples. She looked up at it for a moment, appreciating the sheer beauty of the scene greeting her eyes before she shivered, realising that she was cold.

She pulled her coat around her, swiftly buttoning it up and wishing that she had brought her gloves and scarf with her instead of packing them away with the rest of their stuff.

She glanced down at her watch before she nodded to her self, running lightly down the four stairs that led to the pavement before turning to the right and heading in the direction of the motel, her hands jammed in her coat pockets while she bent her head towards the ground trying to limit the exposure her skin got to the sharp wind hitting her head on.

Once she was at the motel then it wouldn't take her long to complete her task. She had already packed the four bags they had brought with them, managing to get into room thirteen without being spotted by the lone policeman who had been patrolling the area and gathering Sam's belonging, quickly bringing them into her and Dean's room to finish it off. All she had left to do was double check the room to make sure that she left nothing behind which could incriminate them in any way and they were home free.

Then it was a simple case of gathering the bags up, checking out with the receptionist and waiting for her brother in law to appear. She hoped that he wouldn't be too long, he had called her mobile telling her that he was about twenty minutes away and that had been five minutes ago so by the time she had finished everything off which needed to be done, he should be waiting outside for her.

At least she hoped he would be the last thing Tansy wanted was to have to wait around in the dark for him to appear.

She turned into the motel, heading straight for her room, her thoughts focusing on Dean and James wondering what they were doing while they waited for her and Sam to come back.

Pushing the thought away she entered her room and quickly checked it, pleased to see that everything was spotless and exactly like it was meant to be, no one entering it after she left would even consider for a moment that the last two occupants who were in there were Hunters who had just destroyed a vengeful spirit.

Tansy gathered the bags together, picked up Dean's key for the bedside table and left the room, holding the four bags in her hands before pulling the door closed behind her. She pulled a face at how heavy the bags were before she headed across the car park towards the reception area. The parking area was surprisingly packed making her wonder whether there were several other people staying at the motel or whether the local population used it as a place they could park their cars up while they went to a restaurant or into the bar for a quick beverage.

She adjusted the bags in her grip so she could pull open the door and entered, dumping them on one of the hard looking orange chairs to the side of the room before she straightened, running a hand over her hair to make sure it was still in a neat ponytail before she headed to the desk, automatically smiling at the young man who was standing behind the counter, his bored expression morphing into a look of interest as they focused on her face.

"Hi" she said, placing the two keys on the guest book. "I'm checking out, my name is Grace Adams" the boy glanced down before he nodded his head.

"Was everything okay with your stay?" he asked, reaching out and taking the keys, he turned away from her and stuffed the pair of them into a slot in the wooden key holder behind him before he turned back to her with a waiting look. Tansy nodded.

"It was fine, thank you" she answered, frowning slightly when the man leaned against the surface and flashed her a quick smile.

"Well that's good then isn't it" he replied. "I would hate to think that we disappointed you in some way. We take the needs of our customers extremely seriously so if there was anything you needed then I course would be more then happy to provide it for you."

Tansy stared at him for a moment.

"Just let me know where I need to sign and I'll be gone" she said, almost smiling at the flash of disappointment which came to his blue eyes.

"Just here and here please" he replied, pushing a piece of paper to her and passing her a pen. Tansy quickly signed it and handed the pen back, pulling her hand back when he brushed his fingers against hers.

"Thanks" she commented turning away from him and heading towards the door, stopping only to pick up the bags again.

"Come again soon" he called after her.

"Not likely" she muttered to her self allowing the door to slam behind her. She shook her head and walked down towards the road side, perching her self on the small stone wall which surrounded the motel acting as a barrier to the pavement. She had originally planned to remain in the reception area until she saw the impala or Sam called her again but she had swiftly rejected the plan. If she had stayed in the room then the man would have talked her ear of, plying her with bad chat up line after bad chat up line which was the last thing she wanted.

All Tansy wanted was a few minutes by her self to gather her thoughts together about everything which had happened to them over the past two days.

She breathed out loudly, reaching up and running a hand down her face..

God she was tired.

She could have easily have fallen back on the wall and fallen asleep. Between digging up Constance's grave on her own, watching her husband perform yet another reckless move which had sent her heart to her throat in fear, caring for their son and cleaning two rooms to make them spotless, she was simply at the limit for what she could physically take.

All she wanted to do at that moment in time was find a motel, climb into the first bed she saw, wrap her arms around Dean's warm body and fall asleep against his shoulder listening to sound of his breathing, safe in the knowledge that James was safe and warm and asleep in the bed next to theirs.

A small smile came to her face at the thought of it.

Tansy absently swung her legs back and forth, glancing down the empty road before she sighed and shook her head. So much for being fifteen minutes away. She looked around Jericho, her eyes lingering on the buildings as she wondered not for the first time whether this trip had been successful or not.

On one hand they had destroyed Constance Welch, leaving the male population of Jericho and any random passer by safe from her. She would no longer haunt that stretch of road so in that sense they had most definitely been successful and yet they had failed in the real reason they had come there.

They had failed to find John.

All they had was his journal, a page with coordinates which could have led them anywhere and a lot of work which needed to be done now to destroy the record the Jericho police force now had on her husband, a record Dean would never have had if it wasn't for his father.

Not only that but it had nearly turned deadly for them. If Dean hadn't of escaped when he had from the police station then Sam would have died. The thought of it made her sick to the pit of her stomach, how could John have been so irresponsible?

She might not have been Sam's biggest fan but he was still one of the most important thing in Dean's life regardless of how he treated him, it didn't bear thinking of what Sam's death would have done to her husband. He would never have forgiven him self for not reaching his brother in time to stop it happening. He would have driven him self mad from a mixture of blame and guilt when both those charges would have lain at John's door.

Every Hunter who was worth anything, knew without a shadow of a doubt that you cleaned your shit up before you left a motel room, even if something took you away from a Hunt before it was finished you still did it, it was Hunter 101 and it had been the first thing Tansy and her siblings had been taught by her parents and it was a lesson she never forgot for this very reason.

What had he been thinking?

She was only thankful that they had made it time to save Sam and allow him to do what he had done.

Of course it didn't help matters that she didn't understand her brother in law at all. Every time she thought she understood him and what he was about, he would do something which changed her perception of him. There had been times during the hunt where she thought there was a slight glimmer of a hope that if they were given the chance then they might actually end up getting on reasonably well and then the very next second he would say something stupid, leaving her with the insane desire to throttle him with her own bare hands.

It was beyond frustrating.

Shaking her head, Tansy reached up and covered her face with the palm of her hands, breathing in deeply as she allowed her eyes to slowly drift shut.

Trying to figure this out was accomplishing nothing other then giving her a headache. There would be plenty of time for her to figure out her brother in law and their situation at another time when she wasn't falling asleep.

Tansy suddenly dropped her hands from her face, twisting her head to the side to look up the road, her mouth quirking up into a small smile as she heard the familiar sound of the impala coming towards her, she would recognise the noise the engine made anywhere. She jumped off of the wall, bending down and picking the bags up, straightening just in time for the gleaming black car to come to a halt in front of her.

"Sorry I'm late" Sam said out of the window. "You need any help?" he queried, making a move to undo his seatbelt.

"I'm good thanks Sam" she replied as she opened the back door and leaned in, placing the bags down on the floor before she exited the car, closing the door behind her. She moved round the back of the car, absently running her hand over the cool metal of the trunk as she came to the passenger door and opened it, she glanced around Jericho for the last time before she shook her head and climbed in quickly doing her seatbelt up.

"Got everything?" Sam asked.

"Everything" she answered "I even wiped down the surfaces so our fingerprints were gone" Sam raised an eyebrow, looking mildly impressed though he remained silently, instead twisting in his seat to look behind him before he did a U-turn in the road and headed back the way he had come. Tansy leaned back in her chair, closing her eyes with a sigh before she suddenly opening them, glancing at the radio with a look of confusion. "Pop music?" she said, turning to look at him with a raised eyebrow.

"Yep" he said, turning to glance at her "What can I say I'm a fan of recent music" he stated "We can't all live in the seventies and eighties mullet era" Tansy grinned, shaking her head at the comment.

"He's gonna know" she remarked absently.

"He won't" Sam replied confidently. "I know the exact radio channel Dean has it on, I'll merely change it back before we leave the car, he'll never know" Tansy snorted.

"Oh he'll know" she stated equally confidently. "Trust me on this one Sam, Dean will know and you're gonna have to endure the music lecture" Sam glanced at her from the corner of his eyes.

"The music lecture?" he repeated.

"Yes, the music lecture" she said "But I'm not gonna tell you about it, I wouldn't want to spoil that little treat you've got coming up"

"We'll see" he replied "How about a little bet over it?" he asked causing Tansy to shoot him a suspicious look.

"I'm listening" she said carefully.

"Simple, if Dean notices I've changed the channel then I'll buy you a coffee but if he doesn't then you have to buy me one."

"You're on" she said, shaking her head and turning to look out of the window at the passing scenery, surprised by the conversation which had just occurred, a conversation which had actually felt natural. She glanced towards him realising for the first time that this was the very first occasion that she and Sam had been alone together, every other time Dean or James had been there.

She took in his pale face and frowned slightly. He still looked pretty banged up though he no longer looked as though he was going to pass out which was something. If she knew her husband then Dean would have forced Sam to eat something at the diner even if he hadn't wanted to. Hopefully that combined with a good night sleep would be enough to have Sam looking normal by the time they delivered him back to Jessica the next day.

"How are you feeling anyway? You're looking better which is something"

Sam started, glancing towards her as he hit the indicator, heading into the fast lane and putting his foot down on the pedal, clearly Tansy wasn't the only one who wanted to leave Jericho behind in their dust.

"I feel better" he replied "the pain is nothing I can't handle. I'll have two pain killers before I go to bed and I'll be sorted" he announced, tapping his finger against the steering in time with the beat from the pop song which was playing, a song which was surprisingly catchy.

"You'll have to come to our room tonight to get the tablets and to get the wound redressed; I only did a rough job on it. Dean will have more time to properly tend it" she said meeting his eyes. "It might be best if you have the pain killers after he's finished, you'll probably need them more then."

Sam nodded his head.

"At least the bitch is dead so that's something" he said, a glimmer of satisfaction coming to his voice.

"Yeah, she's definitely not coming back" Tansy replied, reaching up and rubbing at her eyes. They sat in silence for about ten minutes before Sam suddenly spoke

"Don't take this the wrong way or anything Tansy but you look pretty damn tired, are you okay?" he asked shooting her a concerned look "Because if you need me to stop off so you can get something before Dean sees you like this then I can" Tansy snorted.

"Thanks Sam, just what every girl wants to hear." She grinned when Sam suddenly looked awkward.

"I'm not saying you look bad but if you wanted to get like an energy drink or some make up or something then I could stop"

"Make up?" Tansy repeated, reaching up and pulling down the sun protector which held a small mirror in it. "I don't look that bad" she announced examining her face carefully in the faint moonlight.

"I'm not… it's just if Jessica is tired she puts all this make up stuff to try and cover it up that's all" he ended awkwardly "You know just forget I said anything."

Tansy blinked at him torn between being offended by his comment or highly amused by it. She settled for grinning at him.

"I appreciate the thought Sam but I'm ok, I'm just tired, it's been a long couple of days for all of us. Besides I sleep with your brother every night, he will see how tired I look regardless of any attempts I make to hide it." She pointed out, rolling her eyes when Sam reached up and ran his hand down his face.

"There's an image I could have lived without" he muttered to him self.

Tansy decided to take pity on him, taking the moment and storing it away for future use, before she changed the subject.

"Where did you leave my boys then?" she asked. Sam shot her a grateful look before he answered.

"At the diner" he responded promptly, "James had just started his fruit pot when I left, there seemed little point in sticking around so I left them to it to come and get you. I figured that the sooner you were back with us, the sooner we could leave and head towards Palo Alto."

"Oh yeah, Dean mentioned that he wanted to move on a bit more tonight" she said thoughtfully.

"Yeah I'm with him on this one" he replied with a shrug "It makes sense to put as much distance between us and Jericho as possible. The police are hardly going to give up on him quite yet and if he pissed them off, which since he's Dean, he probably has then they might be willing to leave their area to search this one."

"How far are we away from the diner now?" Tansy asked curiously. Sam glanced down at the dashboard, his eyes on the clock before he answered her.

"Thirty five minutes or so" he said "we're making good time"

"So we'll get there about eight, if we leave straight away-"

"We could make up another hour or so before we have to stop" Sam finished for her. Tansy nodded.

"Well I can't argue with that logic if it means we get longer in bed in the morning" she commented with a shrug.

"Amen" Sam replied quietly

They fell silent, listening as one pop song blending into another. Tansy was pretty sure she was about to fall asleep when Sam suddenly spoke, his voice hesitant.

"You make him happy you know" he commented, keeping his gaze fixed on the road in front of them. "I've never seen him like this before and it's strange. I mean don't get me wrong there was nothing wrong with him in the beginning but you, you kinda make him better and I don't get how you do it but you do" he ended with a confused look.

Tansy blinked at him.

"I just love him Sam" she answered quietly "I just love him and he does the rest him self" Sam breathed out, the sound almost like a laugh.

"I guess he needs someone who is like you then" he glanced at her. "I'm glad he found someone who he can be with, you know like I've got Jess, I guess I've always worried that-" his voice trailed off as he shook his head.

"Sam, what is this about?" she asked after a moment's pause. Sam shrugged the movement jerky.

"Just… just you know, look after him okay?" he said. Tansy met his gaze searching it before she turned and stared out of her window.

"I always do Sam."

* * *

Author Note

**Thanks for taking the time to read.**


	27. Chapter 27

Reunion

By

Ava Brett

Disclaimer

**Characters which belong to Eric Kripke the creator of Supernatural who feature in this chapter are:**

**Sam Winchester, Dean Winchester and Jessica Moore**

**Characters that belong to me Ava Brett who are featured in this chapter are:**

**Tansy Winchester and James Winchester**

**Please do not use any of my characters without first asking my permission.**

**As usual I am merely using these characters for my own entertainment purposes and I make no money from this at all. It's all for fun **

Author Note

**So in this chapter we finally see a bit of action between Dean and Tansy, I mean they are married after all and they are young so it's pretty natural that they would want to give in to certain temptation and desire. I haven't gone too far even though I've put up the rating but you never know, maybe I'll go back on day when I'm more confident at writing love scenes and making it a great deal saucier or maybe I won't... who knows lol!**

**Sorry for the delay but it's my birthday weekend today (My birthday is on the 24****th****) so I've been busy as you can imagine **

**Anyway please enjoy!**

Overall Summary

**When Sam Winchester left for Stanford University to study law it never occurred to him that life for his brother Dean would go on without him, now his brother is back, needing help to locate their missing father but he isn't alone. Sam needs to figure out where he stands now and decide once and for all if he's a Winchester or not.**

Chapter Summary

"**He has the worst freaking timing in the world"**

Overall Romances

**Main Romances**

**Dean Winchester/Tansy Winchester (OFC) and Sam Winchester/Jessica Moore **

**Mentioned Romances**

**Troy Squire/Amy Hein, Joseph Welch/Constance Welch, John Winchester / Mary Winchester and unrequited Troy Squire / Constance Welch**

Romance for this chapter

**Dean Winchester / Tansy Winchester **

* * *

Chapter Twenty Seven

* * *

**1****st**** November 2005**

**19:50**

**Echo Park Diner**

**Interstate 280**

**California**

* * *

Dean Winchester's point of view

* * *

"Come on, come on, come on" Dean muttered to him self under his breathe, looking down towards his watch for the fifth time within a ten minute period, silently cursing in his mind as he realised that only two minutes had passed since the last time he had looked at it. Somehow it had seemed much longer then that to him.

He breathed out, leaning his head back against the booth seat as he adjusted James in his grip, moving him from his side to his front so the small boy was pressed against his chest with both of Dean's arms wrapped around him tightly keeping him from sliding down. Dean glanced down at the top of his head, smiling when James reached out automatically and grabbed Dean's shirt in his hand even though he was fast asleep.

The small boy had been asleep for twenty minutes now, his head had sank lower and lower towards the small table attached to his high chair and he probably would have fallen asleep that way if Dean had taken pity on his tired son and unstrapped him, holding him close so he could sleep against Dean's body the same way he had since he had been born.

He breathed out nosily, lifting his head from the chair and grasping his coffee instead, taking a sip of the lukewarm liquid even though he didn't actually want any more caffeine that night.

Just what the hell was taking Sam and Tansy so long to get back from Jericho? It hadn't felt like that long of a drive when Dean had been behind the wheel but Sam had been gone nearly three hours now and neither of them had texted or called him to let him know that they were on the way to pick him and James up from the diner. It had been easy to distract him self when James had been awake since the small boy always demanded his parents full attention whenever they were around but now that he was asleep there was nothing to distract Dean from his thoughts.

He closed his eyes for a moment, nervously licking at his lips as he wondered, not for the first time, whether something could have happened to them. Shit happened all the time especially when you were a Winchester. Maybe Sam had crashed the impala on his way back? It had been a hell of a long time since he had last driven it, well over four years unless you counted him driving earlier that day which Dean didn't, and she was never the easiest of cars to control. Add on the fact that his brother was still injured and worn out and it was a recipe for disaster.

Damn it!

Maybe he should have taken the risk of being spotted and gone to pick up Tansy him self, at least he would know exactly where everybody was.

His hand tightened on the handle of the mug as he forced him self to think logically over the situation. It was far more likely that Sam had taken a wrong turn and was now trying to find the correct one to get them back on to the main road. His brother's directional skills had always been severely lacking and it wasn't as if Tansy was much better when it came to reading a map.

Dean blinked glancing down towards James again when the small boy suddenly shifted in his grasp. His fist tightening in the material of Dean's shirt before it slowly spread out across Dean's chest directly over his heart. James pushed against him as he moved backwards, yawning widely and reaching up with a small fist to scrub at his half open eyes.

Dean smiled slightly at the sight James made before he reached up and smoothed his hand down the side of James's head which had been resting against Dean, trying to flatten his son's hair which was now stuck up on end in a riot of messy curls, the fact that the other side looked smooth and neat merely amused Dean.

James glanced up at Dean, his eyes wide and looking very blue in the bright overhead light before he looked away, his gaze moving around the room with a searching look which ended up in a grumpy looking pout.

"Mamma?" he demanded crossly, his eyes finding Dean's again. Dean raised an eyebrow, moving James so his son could stand up on Dean's lap.

"She's coming Jago" he replied "Uncle Sammy has gone to pick her up" his eyes narrowed slightly taking in James's flushed cheeks and tired looking eyes. "Aren't you tired?" he asked gently. "Because you could always sleep some more and I could wake you up the very minute Mamma walks through the door?" James shook his head instantly, his grumpy look morphing into a stubborn look which Dean was all too familiar with.

"No Daddy no" he stated firmly, causing Dean to sigh.

"You get that from your mother you know" he told James, who merely tilted his head to the side, his eyes fixed on Dean.

"Can I get you anything more to eat or drink Sir?" The waitress asked approaching the pair of them with a questioning look on her face. Dean glanced away from James towards her as he shook his head in answer.

"No thank you, I've had just about as much coffee as one man can stand. Any more and I might burst" he remarked, wincing slightly when James's hand found its way into Dean's hair, gripping at the short strands tightly. The waitress nodded her head, glancing down at his half full coffee mug before she spoke again.

"Ok" she said, wiping her hands down her apron as though she was nervous. "If you do change your mind then please let me know and I can get you what you want for you" She flashed him a smile which he absently returned, barely noticing the way her cheeks went pink.

"Will do Mia" he remarked.

The small bell above the door tinkled, attracting Dean's attention from James as he glanced towards it automatically. A relieved smile coming to his face when he saw the familiar tall figure of his brother enter the room, Sam still looked tired but the smile he flashed Dean and James when his eyes landed on them was warm and alert. Dean's eyes flickered away from Sam to land on Tansy just as his wife stepped out from behind Sam's tall frame.

"Mamma" James shrieked, leaping forward in a bid to reach Tansy. Dean grunted at the impact his son's full weight made on his arm but he ignored it. He had suffered worst then that in his life time.

"Hello Jago" Tansy called out softly as she made her way across the room towards them, her eyes fixed on James. "Have you been a good boy for Daddy?" she asked, stopping by the table and reaching for him. Dean lessened his grip allowing his wife to take their son's full weight from him as she straightened away from him, hugging the small boy tightly to her. She glanced at Dean, a smile curving her lips. "Move over love" she stated before she looked back at James as the small boy began speaking excitedly to her, using the mismatched sentences he has began to use recently. It wouldn't be long until James was able to speak properly.

Dean moved across in the booth so he was next to the window, watching as Tansy perched her self on the edge of the seat. Dean watched them for a moment taking in the view they made, a soft smile coming to his face before he turned to Sam.

"What the hell happened? Did you have a bad journey or something?" he asked curiously as Sam took the seat opposite him with a tired sigh. Dean raised an eyebrow as Sam remained silent for a second leaning his head against the back of the seat for a moment with his eyes drifting shut. Dean glanced towards Tansy who glanced at him with a concerned expression before her eyes flickered back to Sam. "Hey Sam, you okay?" Dean demanded leaning forward and placing his hand on Sam's forearm giving him a little shake.

"Just tired Dean" Sam said on a yawn before he pushed him self forward, leaning his arms on the table surface as he met Dean's eyes. "The journey was fine though we got caught behind a lorry driver who had to be the only fucking lorry driver in the world who actually kept to just below the freaking speed limit on an otherwise empty road."

"Sam" Tansy said sternly, her eyes flickering down to James who was watching Sam with a curious look "No swearing in front of listening ears remember" she pointed out. Sam glanced over at her with a guilty expression

"Whoops" he said "Sorry, I forgot" he turned back to Dean. "Don't suppose we got time for a quick coffee before we leave or do you want to set off straight away?" Sam queried with a barely concealed longing tone to his voice as his eyes dropped to the Dean's coffee mug.

"It probably be best if we left straight away Sam so we can try and get as far away from this place as we can" Tansy answered for Dean as she twisted round in her seat so she was facing both of them. Dean lowered his eyes from her face, watching as James snuggled against her with a happy look. He couldn't help the small smile which came across his face at the way his son was acting. Anyone would have thought that the pair of them had been separated for days rather then a few hours.

"I guess so" Sam responded with a sigh as he flattened his hands against the table surface and went to push him self to his feet.

"You can finish this off if you want Sam, I'm done with it" Dean remarked, pushing his mug over to Sam who took it from him with an eager expression coming to his face. "I'm just going to go and pay and then we can blow this joint." He came to his feet in one fluid motion and slipped passed Tansy, running his hand lightly over her upper back before he moved across the room towards the counter where Mia was standing talking to the other waitress; both watched him approach with a smile.

"Ready to pay" Mia asked.

"Yep" Dean said, pulling his wallet out and holding it up with a smile. Mia reached into the pocket of her apron and pulled out a notebook, flicking through the pages as she glanced behind Dean towards the table he had been sitting at all evening.

"That must be your wife" she commented as she stopped at a page and carefully ripped it out.

"Indeed she is" he answered, his eyes narrowing slightly as he searched her face, he glanced behind him watching as Sam downed the rest of Dean's coffee, his eyes closed with an expression of bliss while Tansy pulled James's coat on him, a job made twenty times harder by the fact that James seemed to realise he was still exhausted and had turned boneless, slumped against his mother as though he was a puppet who's strings had been cut.

"She looks nice" Mia said after a pause attracting Dean's attention back to her.

"Yeah" he answered with a shrug. "What can I say; she's definitely the better half of the unit that's for sure." Mia glanced up with a quick smile before she looked back down, a small frown of concentration coming to her face before she spoke.

"That will be twenty two dollar please. Are you planning on paying by cash or by card this evening?" she asked politely.

"By cash" Dean answered instantly, flipping his wallet open, selecting a twenty and five dollar bill and passing them over to her. "Keep the change Mia" he remarked, closing his wallet and slipping it back into the pocket of his jeans. "Have a good evening."

"Thank you very much" she responded "You have a safe drive now," Dean nodded and turned away from her heading back to their table and stopping by it.

"You want me to take him from you?" he asked Tansy reaching out and running his hand over James's head.

"I've got him Dean though if you could take his bag then that would be helpful" she remarked, nodding her head towards the bag which was resting on the seat next to her.

"Don't worry, I've got it" Sam announced, reaching over the table and picking up the bag in question. He slung it over his shoulder, flashing the pair of them a smile before he slid out from the booth and headed towards the exit not waiting to see if they followed him.

"Someone's keen to get home" Tansy remarked with a shake of his head as she shot Dean an amused look.

"Someone is desperate to get to bed more like" he countered, reaching out and wrapping his arm around her shoulder as they headed towards the exit. He shivered slightly, hunching his shoulder up defensively against the sudden drop in temperature.

"Here catch" Dean blinked, glancing up at the sound of Sam's voice, his eyes flickering to the side of him as a sudden flash of metal caught his attention. He reached out automatically and caught the impala keys one handed. "We're parked over here" Sam remarked from the bottom of the diner steps, waving a hand behind him to indicate the impala

"Good" Dean remarked squeezing Tansy's shoulder before he took his arm back and lightly ran down the stairs, crossing the empty road and unlocking his baby. He reached back and took the bag from Sam, shoving it into the trunk before he spoke again. "Who is in the front this time?" he asked, his gaze fixed on his wife who shot him an apologetic look before she looked towards Sam.

"It probably would be better if you take it Sam" she suggested. "There's more room in the front then the back and it better for your injury, less strain and all that" Sam nodded, looking grateful as he made his way to the passenger seat.

"I'm not gonna argue with that" he remarked with a smile towards Tansy before he pulled the door open and got in. Dean rolled his eyes, glancing at his wife over the roof of the impala before he slid into the driver's seat, settling him self so he was comfortable before he placed the key into the ignition and turned it, smiling at the familiar purring sound. He was still going to give her a tune up the next afternoon, god knew she deserved it after everything she had been through that weekend so far.

He waited until Tansy had dealt with James before he hit the indicator, pulling out of their spot and into the main road, a frown coming to his face as he glanced towards his radio before his gaze flicked up towards Sam.

"You changed the radio station" he accused flatly, his eyes narrowing when he caught the look of surprise which came to Sam's hazel eyes, his mouth falling open before the younger man could control the reaction. Dean slapped his hand against the steering wheel. "Damn it Sam, you know the rule, you don't touch the radio full stop."

"What? I…" Sam's words failed him as he turned to look over his shoulder at the back seat with wide eyes. Dean glanced up at the mirror, a reluctant smile coming to his face when he heard the sound of Tansy's laughter.

"I assume you were in on this" he remarked dryly.

"Nope" she stated before she turned her attention to Sam again. "I told you he would know you did it" she remarked, pointing her finger at her brother in law, her smile widening when a sullen expression came to Sam's face. "I believe this means you owe me a coffee" she announced. "And I'm so gonna make it the largest, most expensive coffee that I can think of."

Sam sighed loudly, rolling he eyes at her remark as he slumped back in his seat, gingerly crossing his arms over his chest.

"You must have told him, there would be no other way he could possibly know" he stated suspiciously. Tansy shook her head as she held up one hand.

"When exactly would I have done that?" she demanded with a raised eyebrow. "You've been with me the whole time. I haven't even used my phone" she pointed out.

"Am I missing something here? Other then the fact that Sam messed around with my radio?"

"It's nothing major love. Me and your brother had a little bet on about whether you would notice the radio had been changed. Sam was convinced that if he changed it back to the same channel then you wouldn't but I knew you would." She stated smugly, Dean smirked as her hand drifted across the bare skin of his neck before he twisted his head to look at Sam.

"That was a stupid move to make on your part Sammy boy" Dean stated before he turned his attention back to the road, reaching out and turning the music up so conversation would be difficult to have.

They drove for an hour or so until Dean pulled off into a small car park of a motel. It was fairly small but it looked well maintained and it still had vacancies if the flashing red sign was anything to be believed.

"Is this where you want to stop for the night then Dean?" Tansy asked quietly from the back. Dean nodded his head.

"Yeah" he responded "I'm pretty damn tired now, I could do with a rest"

"Ok" she stated. "If you go and get us the rooms then me and Sam will deal with getting everything ready here" Dean nodded and exited the car, closing the door lightly behind him so he didn't disturb James. He shoved his hands into his coat pockets, looking around him carefully before he crossed the car park, his eyes constantly moving around him before he entered the reception area.

"Evening" the elderly lady behind the counter remarked to him, placing down the novel she was reading, he glanced automatically at the title of the book, raising an eyebrow at it before he answered her.

"Evening, I'd like two rooms please" he said.

She watched him carefully through sharp dark brown eyes before her wrinkled face suddenly broke into a smile and she nodded her head.

"What kind of rooms will you be wanting this evening?" she questioned.

"A single room with a queen sized bed and another room with two king size bed please" Dean answered her, glancing at the clock above her head. It had just gone nine thirty.

"That will be eighty dollars in total for the night" she said. Dean nodded, pulling out his spare credit card and passed it over to her. She glanced down at it, looking at it carefully before she flipped it over in her hand and swiped it in the machine.

"The Queen sized bedroom is room fifteen while the double king sized bed is room three. Enjoy your stay with us Mr Adams" she remarked.

"Thanks" Dean remarked with a nod before he turned and headed back into the cold. Sam and Tansy were standing out of the impala, James held in Tansy's arms, all three of them clearly waiting for him to return to them.

"Catch Sammy" Dean remarked, throwing the key towards his brother. "You've been put in room fifteen" Sam nodded as he caught the key, glancing down at it before he looked back up at Dean.

"What number are you in?" he asked curiously, leaning down and picking his bag off of the floor, His face twisting into a look of pain at the movement.

"We're in room three" Dean said, picking up the three bags which were next to where Tansy stood. Sam nodded his head, looking away from him to scope out the building behind them, his eyes lingering on the doorways clearly trying to figure out which one of them would be his for the night. He turned back to Dean.

"I'll dump my stuff in my room and then I'll be down to get these bandages properly sorted out and to grab some pain killers" he remarked, absently rubbing at his injury as he spoke.

"I packed the first aid kit in your bag Dean" Tansy remarked "So there shouldn't be any problem finding it so just come down whenever you're ready Sam though preferably sooner rather then later."

"We'll see you in a moment" Dean added before he turned to his wife. "Tansy we're this way I think, Sam you're that way" he waved his hand to the opposite side of the motel watching as Sam nodded and turned away from them.

"Let's go Dean" Tansy remarked coming to his side. Dean nodded and headed over to the area where they were due to spend the night. He placed the bags on the floor just outside the room before he reached out and stuck the key in the lock, turning it and placing his hand on the handle when it clicked.

"Stay here while I check it out" he instructed Tansy who nodded her head, a serious look coming to her face as she waited in silence. Dean glanced away from her, reaching to the waist band of his jeans and pulling out the pistol which he kept there.

He looked back at Tansy and James one more time before he slid into the room, closing the door quietly behind him. He stood in the darkness, his ears straining for any slight sound which might have indicated that he wasn't alone in the room but there was nothing. His eyes narrowed slightly as he held the gun steady in front of him and reached out, his fingers brushing the light switch which he flipped, flooding the surprisingly spacious room with light. He looked around him, eyes searching every possible space someone could hide but there was nothing. Dean was the only person in that room.

He moved swiftly towards the bathroom, kicking at the door and moving in, checking the bathtub before he finally lowered his gun and headed back to the door, opening it and speaking.

"We're good in here" He said simply, bending down and picking up the bags. Tansy nodded her head, following him into the room and closing the door behind them, her eyes automatically glancing around her the same way Dean had done.

"I packed the salt in your bag Dean" she remarked, heading to the bed furthest away from the door and stripping the tucked in duvet back. She gently lay James down on the mattress, reaching down and stroking his dark hair away from his eyes before she straightened, looking around her with a searching look. Dean grabbed the small duffle bag they used for James's belongings and held it out to her, smiling when she took it from him with a smile before he turned his attention to his own jobs.

Unzipping his bag, he rummaged through some of his clothes before his hand touch a smooth, cool surface. He grasped it, pulling out the large container of salt they kept with them at all times for when they had to stay away from their home.

"We're gonna have to refill this tomorrow after we've dropped Sam off Tans, thing feels nearly empty" he remarked, hefting the container in his hands.

"Another job to add to the ever growing list" Tansy answered with a sigh. Dean shook his head, unscrewing the top of it. He quickly took care of the windows in the room before he headed to the bathroom to take care of those ones as well. He headed back into the main room, glancing towards Tansy before he headed to the door, dumping the container to the side of him as he lifted up the small welcome mat and looked at the back of it, wrinkling his nose when he realised it was bare.

"Dean?" Dean glanced back towards his wife, nodding his head when she held up a thick black marker pen to him with a questioning look. She threw it to him.

"Thanks Tans" he remarked absently, turning his attention back to the mat and drawing a devil's trap on the back of it. He checked his work, making sure it was perfect before he laid the mat back in the position it had been in before he grabbed the salt container and finished his work by putting a salt line around the door way, leaving enough space for the door to swing open to admit Sam when he eventually came to see them. "Done" he stated, pushing him self to his feet and placing the container on the nearby table surface.

"I'm done as well" Tansy said, wrapping the duvet around their sleeping son. Dean crossed the room, slipping past her so he could kiss his son on the forehead, a smile coming to his face as he watched the face James pulled in his sleep before he turned away and sat down on the other bed, watching as Tansy said her own good nights to their boy.

She turned round to face him, her eyebrow rising when Dean silently held his hand out to her. She hesitated only a brief second, her gaze flickering to James before she took a step forward and placed her hand in his, allowing Dean to pull her forward until she was straddling his lap, facing him.

"Hi" he said nuzzling his face into Tansy's neck and taking a deep breathe, allowing the familiar vanilla scent to push the residual stress of the day away from him.

"Hi" she replied back, reaching and running her hand over the top of his hair. They sat that way for a moment before Dean spoke, his voice quiet.

"I'm sorry I freaked you out earlier with the whole diving out of the car thing" he said. Tansy was silent for a moment before she sighed.

"Just don't do it again, you could have been hurt. All you had to do was warn me what you were planning and I would have slowed the car right down but you didn't."

"Yeah it was an stupid ass move" he answered, pressing a soft kiss against the pulse point in her neck smiling against her skin when he felt the small shudder that went through her at the gentle contact.

"You think Sherlock" she replied sarcastically, rolling her eyes at him. Dean made a small sound of amusement, reaching up and framing her face in his hands as he met her gaze steadily.

"Okay, I admit it, it was a really stupid ass move and I'm sorry, next time I jump out of a moving car, I'll warn you in advance" he promised, a hint of amusement to his voice as he trailed his thumb across her cheekbone. "I just wasn't thinking Tans" he went on sounding serious "all I could think about was getting to Sammy in time and helping him." Tansy searched his eyes for a moment before she sighed, finally relaxing in his hold.

"Well it's not like I can really fault you for wanting to protect your brother from harm, I guess we all do stupid things when it comes to keeping our siblings safe" she remarked, reaching up and wrapping one hand round the back of his neck, pulling him forward so there was only a slight amount of space between their mouths. He was close enough that he could feel her breathe against his lips as she tilted her head slightly to the right. "Just don't make this a habit Dean or I'll be forced to beat your ass" she commented.

Dean smirked.

"Maybe I'd even let you" he remarked, bridging the gap between them and kissing her, his eyes closing as he wrapped one arm around her waist, pulling her hard against him so there was no space between their bodies while his other hand moved down her face, resting softly against the side of her throat. She made a hum of appreciation before she pulled back slightly, a glazed look in her eyes.

"Dean, James…"

"Is fast asleep" Dean murmured "and he's not gonna wake up if you're quiet Tansy."

"But-" Dean swallowed her words in another kiss, gently licking at her lower lip until her mouth parted allowing him the access he wanted. He made a rough pleased sound, his tongue tangling with Tansy's as he flipped them over so she was on her back staring up at him with wide blue eyes. God he could stare into her eyes forever and not get bored by the different shades of blue or the constant shifts of emotions she displayed.

He felt her hand moved under his shirt, her nails raking hard at his skin as they continued to kiss, each kiss longer and dirtier then the last one.

Dean froze, blinking in confusion at the sudden knock on the door. His eyes founds Tansy's as they slowly pulled back, turning as one to look at the door before they both turned to look at James to make sure he was still asleep.

"Let's ignore it" Dean said quietly, leaning down and kissing her again, a series of short kisses designed to drive her mad. She allowed it to happen for a moment, her arm reaching around him and tugging him down before she pulled back slightly.

"It's gonna be Sam" she pointed out. Dean shrugged.

"Sam who?" he teased, wrapping an arm around her waist and using it to pull her up so she was straddling his thighs.

"Very funny" she remarked, her eyes going back to the door even as she tilted her head to the side, allowing him more access to her neck. "Sam needs pain killers remember, he's injured" she commented before she met his mouth again.

"Yeah well trust me when I say he's gonna need pain killers by the time I've finished with him. Dean replied, pushing her shirt away from her shoulder and down her arms. The minute it was off he screwed it up in a ball and threw it over his shoulder uncaring of where it landed.

"Someone is eager tonight" she commented with a shake of her head.

"Yeah well someone hasn't had his wife for two days" Dean pointed out with another long drugging kiss.

"True" she muttered into the kiss before she leaned back, putting her hand against Dean and holding him back for a moment. "But someone also needs to take care of their sick brother first. Once you've dealt with him, you can then deal with me" she promised him, giving him one final kiss before she moved away from him, slipping off of the bed and placing space between them.

Dean groaned, reaching up and running his hand down his face in frustration.

"Freaking fantastic" he muttered, glancing down at him self and rolling his eyes. "My brother had the worst freaking timing in the world, I swear to god that he's planned this somehow" he complained. Tansy rolled her eyes.

"Stop complaining Dean" she said. "The sooner you deal with him, the sooner we can get back to what we were doing and the sooner I can help you with your little problem" she said with a laugh. Dean couldn't help the grin that came to his face as he came to his feet and awkwardly made his way to the door. He glanced through the peephole before he opened the door. "Sam, wish I could say this was a pleasant surprise" he remarked "please come in."

Sam shot him a wary look before his gaze flickered to Tansy searching her face for a moment before a look of comprehension came to his eyes accompanied by an awkward expression to his face.

"Look if I've come at a bad time then-"

"It's fine Sam" Tansy said, walking over to the bed and rummaging through Dean's bag, pulling out the small first aid kit she had made up in Jericho. She held it out to Dean who took it from her, his eyes raking up and down her body as he wished again that Sam would fuck off for an hour or so. "Dean will see to you now" she said, addressing her comment to Sam as she reached out and ran a hand down Dean's chest, gripping the material and pulling him forward into a quick kiss, her tongue swiping his lower lip before she released him. "I'm gonna grab my shower now" she said, turning and grabbing her own bag before she headed into the bathroom, closing the door behind her with a resounding click.

Dean stared at the smooth surface of the door, contemplating whether he should throw Sam out and kick the door down when an awkward cough caught his attention and he turned to look at his brother with a raised eyebrow at the expression on Sam's face.

"Seriously Dean, I can come back later on if you want to-" his voice trailed off again, his face reddening slightly as he waved a hand towards the closed bathroom door.

"No" Dean said, walking over to the bed, "You're here now so get your ass over here and let's get this sorted out." Sam nodded, moving towards him and lowered him self onto the bed looking up at Dean. "Take your shirt off Sammy, I can hardly look at it if it's covered up" he commented, opening the kit up and pulling out what he needed from it. He glanced up at Sam firing questions at him. "Are you feeling hot? Feeling cold? Are you experiencing any other pain other then the one in your chest?" He waited until Sam shook his head before he spoke again. "On a scale of one to ten how would you currently rate the pain?" he asked.

"Maybe a seven" Sam responded. Dean nodded his head.

"Well this is gonna hurt like a bitch Sammy so you might want to bite down on a pillow in case you scream or make a loud noise" Dean remarked. Sam glanced at him a moment in confusion before he looked over his shoulder at James a look of realisation coming to his face. He grabbed the first pillow he saw and pulled it towards him. "You ready?" Dean asked. Sam breathed in deeply and nodded. Dean nodded back giving his brother a reassuring look before he gently took of the bandages from earlier. His forehead furrowing into a frown as he saw how red and tender the injury looked. He poured the TCP on the clothe he was holding before he placed it against the injury, wincing in sympathy at the muffled groan which escaped Sam's mouth at the contact. "Sorry Sammy boy" he muttered "But we've got to clean the wound out to make sure it doesn't get infected. That bitch really did a number on you" he commented. Sam nodded, closing his eyes tightly as Dean continued to wash out each individual wound before he smothered it in antiseptic cream and covered them up with fresh bandages. "I'm done" he remarked "Pain killer time now, you want the mild ones or the ones which will knock you out?" he asked, rummaging through the bag and pulling out the two tubs of painkillers. Sam didn't even hesitate in his reply.

"The ones that will knock me the fuck out Dean" he answered breathlessly as he came to his feet, swaying on the spot. Dean automatically reached out to him and steadied him.

"I'm taking you back to your room Sammy" he commented firmly. Sam glanced at him, shaking his head at him.

"I don't need you to do that, I'm fine, I-"

"Shut it Sam, I don't remember making my statement into a question for you to argue with. Wait here and keep an eye on Jago while I let Tansy know" he said, crossing the room to the bathroom. He pressed down on the handle, unsurprised to find it unlocked and entered, closing the door behind him. He blinked in the steam and spoke. "Tans, I'm just taking Sam to his room, he looks like he's about to face plant so-" his voice trailed off as Tansy's head appeared from behind the shower curtain.

"Is he alright? Is his injury ok?" she asked with a concerned look.

"He'll be fine" Dean commented, Tansy nodded, a smile coming to her face when Dean continued to stare at her. "Erm Dean, Sam is waiting for you outside, he probably needs to lie down right about now" she remarked.

"Yeah right," Dean said, shaking his head "James-"

"Will be fine, I'm finished up here" she said, stepping out from behind the shower curtain and wrapping a towel round her body, her smile growing when Dean groaned out loud.

"See now you're just teasing me" he commented, taking a step towards her. He stopped when Tansy held her hand up.

"Deal with Sam first Dean, he needs you" she said steadily "I'm not going anywhere trust me on that" she promised.

"Fine" he muttered. "But just so you know I really hate Sam right about now" he commented, his eyes moving up and down her body again before he forced him self to turn and leave the room. His eyes automatically moved to James to make sure he was still okay before he turned back to Sam who had sat him self at the edge of the bed. "Let's go then" he said when Sam came to his feet and headed towards the door and out into the cold air.

"What time do you want to leave tomorrow morning?" Sam asked quietly, breaking the silence between them. Dean shot him a quick concerned look.

"Four AM" he responded. "We're about three hours away from where you live now so we should have you home for about seven which will give you some time to get some breakfast and shower and everything. Do you want me to give you a wake up call at three thirty?" he asked "You know just in case the pain killers make you drowsy and you sleep through your own alarm clock?"

"Yeah that sounds like a good plan" Sam said stopping by his room. Dean watched him for a moment as Sam opened the door turning towards him. "You know even though we haven't found Dad I haven't regretted this at all. I mean the timing of course completely sucks and everything but… well-"

"Yeah I know Sam" Dean interrupted. "You seriously don't have to say anything. Just get to bed and get some sleep, you need it" he gave Sam a gentle push through the door. "Call if you need anything during the night."

"Yeah I will, thanks Dean. Say goodnight to Tansy for me" he said.

"Will do"

Dean waited for Sam to close the door before he turned and jogged lightly across the car park towards his own room, a smile coming to his face.

Tomorrow could wait; he had business to take of right now.

* * *

Author Note

**Yay perfect birthday gift to me!**

**Thanks for taking the time to read!**


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